02/09/14

I am...

I am happy at how this photograph turned out.  It was one of those surreal moments in time when you capture the sun just so. 

I am silly sometimes.

I am tired sometimes.

I am a wife.

I am a mother.

I am a teacher.

When one thinks of the subject/verb combination of "I am", one thinks of simple sentences like those stated above.  These would be "bony" sentences according to what I teach in class.  :)

In teaching from Exodus in the last few weeks, I am thinking of another "I Am."

I am thinking of this:

Exodus 3:14

And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you.

I always marvel each year when I reteach this section how the Lord continues to bring new "nuggets" to my own learning.  This year "I AM" has taken center stage.  I want my kids to know that our God is the I AM.

 

His name is not:

"I Was."

"I Might Be."

"I Could Be."

"I Should Be."

"I Will."

He IS... "I AM."

Let's think on that for a moment.  

The Lord is always there.  When you are in the state of "I am", you are in the present.  He is always in the present, but that was also the past, and it will be the future.  

He always is.

What a comfort to know my Lord is the "I AM."  I began a search of all of the examples He gives us in His Word of using "I AM" and came away astonished.  Here are a few I found.  I hope they give you encouragement today to know that God is there.  

Always.

Exodus 6:7

And I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God: and ye shall know that I am the Lord your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. (Or for today... our sin!)

Exodus 16:12

I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the Lord your God.  (He provides what we need for nourishment!)

Leviticus 19:10

And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the Lord your God.  (He provides for those less fortunate!  We should be willing to lend a helping hand to those in need.)

Psalm 46:10

Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.  (Be still and know Him!  He is there.)

Song of Solomon 2:1 
I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. (He is beautiful and so is His creation.)

Isaiah 41:10

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. (What a comfort to me to know I need not fear for He is holding me with his hands.)

Isaiah 43:10

Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.  (He is the one, TRUE God.)

Isaiah 44:24 

Thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself; (He is the Creator and my Redeemer!)
 

Isaiah 46:4

And even to your old age I am he; and even to hoar hairs will I carry you: I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you. (What a precious promise that He goes with us into our older years and carries those who are His, home to be with Him.) 

Jeremiah 32:27

Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me? (How many times do we doubt that He can handle our troubles?)

Matthew 28:20b
and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.  (Always there, my Lord...)

John 6:35

And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. (You can be spiritually fed and never hunger when your trust is in the I AM!)

John 8:12

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. (I am so thankful that the Lord is my light and salvation!)

John 10:9

I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. (He is the door to freedom... to true joy.) 

John 10:14

I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. (I am so thankful that I have a Shepherd Who cares enough for me, His sheep, that He knows me and will always come for me.

John 11:25
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:  (The "I AM" lives today!  We do not serve a God of stone or one that is dead.) 

John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (There is no other way to I AM than through Jesus Christ.)

John 15:5

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. (Even though we think so, we can do nothing apart from the I AM.)

 

Revelation 22:13

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.

He is.  He was.  He will be.  He is the I AM.  We can be assured each day that we can trust that the Lord will be there for every aspect of our lives.  Good and bad, He holds us and understands.