“I am who I am”
(God – Exodus 3:14)
These are bold words. Most likely the boldest every spoken in history.
I remember as a child the wide array of feelings I experienced when the pastor would read this part of Exodus during a sermon.
I was filled with awe. The statement is final, no room for debate. I proclamation God makes about Himself. Coming from the Creator of the Universe, the God who knows what was, is and is to come it must be a flawless, perfect statement. A statement like no other and a proclamation that no human being would be able to make.
But I was also perplexed, because I did not completely understand what God meant by it.
Sometimes I could not really understand how the statement could be applicable to me and my spiritual growth.
But God is truly amazing – especially when He makes statements about Himself.
Saying to the beings you created that You are who You are makes it clear that there is no room for change in the character of the proclaimer.
God will not change. He is the same, today tomorrow and forever. The statement transcends time and space. No matter what I make of God in my life – if I down play His importance, if I deny Him, worship Him, forget Him, He will and cannot change. His existence, His grace and His feelings about me is not dependant on my perception of Him.
But it also means that I cannot manipulate God. I cannot change His character to fit into the picture perfect God I have created for myself
The statement is also an invite from God. Saying I am who I am, does not reveal who you are. No, it rather invites you to find out what it means to say something like that about yourself.
God wants us to embrace the opportunity to engage in a relationship with Him. He wants to reveal Himself to us, in so many different ways. He wants to be known.
Isn’t it mind blowing that God chooses this bold, but yet inviting phrase to reveal Himself through the ages to us. Embrace the opportunity to know God fully.
You won’t regret it.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Presente
Wanneer ek die word present hoor is daar onwillekeurig ‘n opgewondenheid wat in my opwel.
Presente bring saam met hulle teenwoordigheid opgewondenheid, die gedagte dat jy so groot deel van iemand se gedagtes was dat jy hulle jou met iets spesiaal wou verras.
Dit gaan nie noodwending oor wat jy kry nie, veel eerder wanneer (onverwags is soveel beter), hoe dit toegedraai is en dan natuurlik die gedagte dat jy nie weet wat in daardie pakkie toegesluit is nie.
Presente word gewoonlik uitgedeel tydens feesgeleenthede. Presente dra betekenis, dit is ‘n simbool van omgee, maar veel meer – elke present word ‘n boodskapper om die ongespreke woorde wat ons in ons harte dra uit te spreek.
Ek glo dat God ons ook elke dag met presente wil seën – dit is asof Hy ons wil omarm met ietsie spesiaal wat ons sal herinner aan Sy grootheid, maar juis ook die gedagte day Hy te midde van Sy almagtige teenwoordigheid steeds ons as die appel van sy oog beskou.
Gister het ons wakker geword met die geluid van kakelaars in ons ore.
’n Kakelaar is ’n mooi voël – dit is eintlik ligtelik gestel. Dit is ’n voël wat met ’n oranje, groen en pers veredos spog. Kombineer dit met sy lang geboë snawel en flambojante stert en hy maak om die minste te sê ’n imposante vertoning.
’n Kakelaar is nie ’n algemene gesig nie – hy is skaars. Hulle persoonlikhede is warm – hulle geniet mekaar se geselskap, en soos sy naam aandui kekkel hulle, jy hoor hulle myle vêr.
Terwyl ek en Mario die verkyker nader getrek het en hulle deur die tuin gevolg het van boom van boom het daar ’n dankbaarheid in my opgewel.
Hier is ons vanoggend saam, rustig by die huis en ons aanskou hierdie spesiale gesig. Dit was my present – ’n geskenkie uit God se hand.
Ek kon help om te dink aan hoeveel geskenke ek elke dag van God ontvang waaraan ek nie eers dink nie. My familie en vriende, gesonheid, om vars lug in te asem, in ‘n land te leef waar daar vrede is. Als wat ek maar as vanselfsprekend aanvaar kan in een oomblik van my weggeneem word.
Dit is net genade.
En dan die grootste geskenk wat ek ooit kon ontvang – om deur die bloed van Jesus vlekkeloos voor God te kan staan. Here, dankie – ek kry dit elke dag, nuut toegedraai in U genade, ek hoef dit nie te verdien nie, ek kan ook nie. U gee dit net, en ek sê nooit eers dankie nie.
U alleen weet hoeveel daardie present gekos het en dit vir my?
Help my vandag en elke dag van my lewe om so te leef om dat my lewe ’n dankgetuienis sal wees.
Presente bring saam met hulle teenwoordigheid opgewondenheid, die gedagte dat jy so groot deel van iemand se gedagtes was dat jy hulle jou met iets spesiaal wou verras.
Dit gaan nie noodwending oor wat jy kry nie, veel eerder wanneer (onverwags is soveel beter), hoe dit toegedraai is en dan natuurlik die gedagte dat jy nie weet wat in daardie pakkie toegesluit is nie.
Presente word gewoonlik uitgedeel tydens feesgeleenthede. Presente dra betekenis, dit is ‘n simbool van omgee, maar veel meer – elke present word ‘n boodskapper om die ongespreke woorde wat ons in ons harte dra uit te spreek.
Ek glo dat God ons ook elke dag met presente wil seën – dit is asof Hy ons wil omarm met ietsie spesiaal wat ons sal herinner aan Sy grootheid, maar juis ook die gedagte day Hy te midde van Sy almagtige teenwoordigheid steeds ons as die appel van sy oog beskou.
Gister het ons wakker geword met die geluid van kakelaars in ons ore.
’n Kakelaar is ’n mooi voël – dit is eintlik ligtelik gestel. Dit is ’n voël wat met ’n oranje, groen en pers veredos spog. Kombineer dit met sy lang geboë snawel en flambojante stert en hy maak om die minste te sê ’n imposante vertoning.
’n Kakelaar is nie ’n algemene gesig nie – hy is skaars. Hulle persoonlikhede is warm – hulle geniet mekaar se geselskap, en soos sy naam aandui kekkel hulle, jy hoor hulle myle vêr.
Terwyl ek en Mario die verkyker nader getrek het en hulle deur die tuin gevolg het van boom van boom het daar ’n dankbaarheid in my opgewel.
Hier is ons vanoggend saam, rustig by die huis en ons aanskou hierdie spesiale gesig. Dit was my present – ’n geskenkie uit God se hand.
Ek kon help om te dink aan hoeveel geskenke ek elke dag van God ontvang waaraan ek nie eers dink nie. My familie en vriende, gesonheid, om vars lug in te asem, in ‘n land te leef waar daar vrede is. Als wat ek maar as vanselfsprekend aanvaar kan in een oomblik van my weggeneem word.
Dit is net genade.
En dan die grootste geskenk wat ek ooit kon ontvang – om deur die bloed van Jesus vlekkeloos voor God te kan staan. Here, dankie – ek kry dit elke dag, nuut toegedraai in U genade, ek hoef dit nie te verdien nie, ek kan ook nie. U gee dit net, en ek sê nooit eers dankie nie.
U alleen weet hoeveel daardie present gekos het en dit vir my?
Help my vandag en elke dag van my lewe om so te leef om dat my lewe ’n dankgetuienis sal wees.
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Fear
We all know fear. The feeling that creeps up on you when you expect it the least. When you are faced with a challenge - a challenge that you might have looked forward to, a challenge you need to push you toward the goal you always wanted to reach. And then, just when you think: I can achieve this, fear gives you a full-on punch in the stomach.
You stand breathless, devastated by the effects this one emotion can have on your morale. In the face of fear, all the best intentions melt away.
Does fear accompany us from birth, or is it part of learned behaviour? For a long time I believed that we are born into a world of fear and that it inevitably became part of us, whether we chose it or not.
That was until I watched Annabeth drawing.
She is four years old and recently when we took the Gautrain to Sandton for breakfast we asked her to draw a picture of her experience.
We were amazed. She took the crayon and without a moment's hesitation she fired away at the drawing. She did not plan, she did not think about it. The positioning of the train, the relationship of the train to the rest of the objects in the picture - she did not plan any of it.
Living from within the passion inside of her there was no place for any fear to root itself into her drawing experience. She was not scared to pour her emotions of joy and pleasure into the picture. It was almost as if the joy and passion that flowed through her displaced all the fear that could possibly make its way into the drawing.
I compare this to my own drawing experiences. Before each drawing I sit and contemplate. I plan, I measure, I compare. I can't just start and draw. But why? Why can't I just start?
There are so many past experiences that influence our future. We live through disappointments, we push ourselves towards unrealistic heights through comparison to other people. All these experiences blend together and it stirs within us the bitter taste of fear.
Suddenly we can not just embrace every moment, we cannot go to the drawing board and trust that the picture will flow through our true emotions and passions of life.
This is heartbreaking. That we loose our joy of life to the darkness that fear brings. It is our fear of failure, our lack of trust in who we are that inhibits our true experience of life.
We need to draw our lives without the fear of how our picture will look to those around us.
If we live fearlessly we will start to see life as it truly is. Take the step, take the crayon in your hand and draw, it is your picture...
You stand breathless, devastated by the effects this one emotion can have on your morale. In the face of fear, all the best intentions melt away.
Does fear accompany us from birth, or is it part of learned behaviour? For a long time I believed that we are born into a world of fear and that it inevitably became part of us, whether we chose it or not.
That was until I watched Annabeth drawing.
She is four years old and recently when we took the Gautrain to Sandton for breakfast we asked her to draw a picture of her experience.
We were amazed. She took the crayon and without a moment's hesitation she fired away at the drawing. She did not plan, she did not think about it. The positioning of the train, the relationship of the train to the rest of the objects in the picture - she did not plan any of it.
Living from within the passion inside of her there was no place for any fear to root itself into her drawing experience. She was not scared to pour her emotions of joy and pleasure into the picture. It was almost as if the joy and passion that flowed through her displaced all the fear that could possibly make its way into the drawing.
I compare this to my own drawing experiences. Before each drawing I sit and contemplate. I plan, I measure, I compare. I can't just start and draw. But why? Why can't I just start?
There are so many past experiences that influence our future. We live through disappointments, we push ourselves towards unrealistic heights through comparison to other people. All these experiences blend together and it stirs within us the bitter taste of fear.
Suddenly we can not just embrace every moment, we cannot go to the drawing board and trust that the picture will flow through our true emotions and passions of life.
This is heartbreaking. That we loose our joy of life to the darkness that fear brings. It is our fear of failure, our lack of trust in who we are that inhibits our true experience of life.
We need to draw our lives without the fear of how our picture will look to those around us.
If we live fearlessly we will start to see life as it truly is. Take the step, take the crayon in your hand and draw, it is your picture...
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