Do you know who I Am?

Living in southern California, I've heard lots of stories of celebrities, in moments of confrontations, saying "Do you know who I am?". I even once heard from a woman whose child attended school with children of celebrities who was also challenged by them with, "Don't you know who I am?"

But it's not who we are that matters, it's who He Is: God Almighty alone is the Great I Am.  The one and only Great I Am.  The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit is He.

"God said (to Moses), 'I am who I am, You must tell them: 'The one who is called I AM has sent me to you.' "  Exodus 3:14 (GNT)

Jesus, the Son of God, said to the Isrealites, "I am telling you the truth, Jesus replied, "Before Abraham was born, 'I Am'."
(This was in response to someone questioning Him, "You are not even fifty years old - and you have seen Abraham?")

In these scriptures, God calls Himself  "I AM".   We call Him the "Great I Am" - but God's greatness goes infinitely beyond any words.

What brought me to this whole thought was reading in Sarah Young's book Jesus Calling for January 5 about relying on Jesus instead of trying to do anything alone.  "But those who are successful in their own strength tend to go their own way, forgetting about Me.  It is through problems and failure, weakness and neediness that you learn to rely on Me."

I love this song "Great I AM" performed by New Life Worship...WOW! Powerful!  Lifts the Soul!  Soul therapy.

A Sweet Song (Just HOW MUCH Jesus Loves Us)

When we see just HOW MUCH Jesus loves us, it changes us forever.

Haven Today Ministries (haventoday.org) shared this message last night with a sweet story about a woman who was so depressed one morning, sitting at her kitchen table.  She often fed the mockingbirds who would come to her window.   

While she was sitting there, a mockingbird flew up to her window and started tapping on it to get her attention. 

Then he flew up into a tree just outside her window and began singing his little heart out, song after  song, as only a mockingbird can.

What a wonderful way Jesus showed His love for her in that moment.

One Little Baby

One Little Baby

One Little Baby was all it took

He came to Earth...and look!

One Little Baby, purer than gold

He gives us Life eternal - and behold!

You will live because of Him.

Imagine If You Were There!

"The Bible says the night Jesus was born, God's glorious light surrounded and terrified shepherds guarding their sheep in the fields.  Stupefied, they watched and listened as an angel appeared to announce the great event.  Then the heavens opened to reveal "a multitude of the heavenly host" - countless angels saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests.'  What a sight!  What a sound! What an overwhelming, matchless, indescribable experience!" 
Author Nan Anderson in the Anchor Devotional, Dec. 13, 2015 -- I highly recommend getting this devotional monthly! It's doing wonders for me.

Can you imagine?  What if you were there to experience this?  I am just in awe of it!  How I wish the world could see this today!  This is what we should celebrate!  This is what Christmas is about!  This is what the Bible says:

Luke 2:8-14 (GNT)  "There were some shepherds in that part of the country who were spending the night in the fields, taking care of their flocks.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone over them.  They were terribly afraid, but the angel said to them, 'Don't be afraid! I am here with good news for you, which will bring great joy to all the people.  This very day in David's town your Savior was born - Christ the Lord!  And this is what will prove it to you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.'  Suddenly a great army of heaven's angels appeared with the angel, singing praises to God: 'Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom He is pleased!' "

I AM WITH YOU IN ALL THAT YOU DO

"I AM WITH YOU IN ALL THAT YOU DO, even in the most menial task. I am always aware of you, concerned with every detail of your life. Nothing escapes My notice-not even 'the number of hairs on your head'. However, your awareness of My Presence falters and flickers; as a result, your life experience feels fragmented. When your focus is broad enough to include Me in your thoughts, you feel safe and complete. When your perception narrows so that problems or details fill your consciousness, you feel empty and incomplete.

Learn to look steadily at Me in all your moments and all your circumstances. Though the world is unstable and in flux, you can experience continuity through your uninterrupted awareness of My Presence. 'Fix your gaze on what is unseen', even as the visible world parades before your eyes." -- Jesus Calling, Sarah Young (December 7) Matthew 10:29-31; Hebrews 11:27; 2 Corinthians 4:18

Matthew 10:29-31 "For only a penny you can buy two sparrows, yet not one sparrow falls to the ground without your Father's consent. And for you, even the hairs of your head have all been counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth much more than many sparrows!"

Hebrews 11:27 "It was faith that made Moses leave Egypt without being afraid of the king's anger. As though he saw the invisible God, he refused to turn back."

2 Corinthians 4:18 "For we fix our attention, not on things that are seen, but on things that are unseen. What can be seen lasts only for a time, but what cannot be seen lasts forever."

When People Feel They Have the Right to Control Others

I'm dealing a lot with this right now in my personal life.  So I looked up what Jesus had to say on the subject.  So far, what I found was when He addressed the Pharisees in Mark 7 about how they manipulate people with their man-made laws by making it sound like those laws are God's.

(They are talking about what is explained in Mark 7:3) "For the Pharisees, as well as the rest of the Jews, follow the teaching they received from their ancestors: they do not eat unless they wash their hands in the proper way;"

Mark 7:5 (GNT) So the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law asked Jesus, "Why is it that Your disciples do not follow the teaching handed down by our ancestors, but instead eat with ritually unclean hands?"

Mark 7:6-7 (GNT) Jesus answered them, "How right Isaiah was when he prophesied about you! You are hypocrites, just as he wrote: 'These people, says God, honor Me with their words, but their heart is really far away from Me. It is no use for them to worship Me, because they teach man-made rules as though they were My laws!'

Mark 7:8-9 (GNT) "You put aside God's command and obey the teachings of men." And Jesus continued, "You have a clever way of rejecting God's law in order to uphold your own teaching."


So there, you control freaks! Take that!

Scripture of the Day - Psalm 62:11

Psalm 62:11 (GNT) "More than once I have heard God say that power belongs to Him and that His love is constant."

If I can memorize any scripture this week, it will be this one; and I will know that I am safe and loved.