December 1: The Great I Am
♫ Music:
Day 2 - Monday, December 01
Title: The Great I Am
Scripture #1: Exodus 3:14–15 (NKJV)
And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” Moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’”
Scripture #2: John 8:58 (NKJV)
Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”
Poetry & Poet:
“The Opening of Eyes”
by David Whyte
That day I saw beneath dark clouds
the passing light over the water
and I heard the voice of the world speak out,
I knew then, as I had before
life is no passing memory of what has been
nor the remaining pages in a great book
waiting to be read.
It is the opening of eyes long closed.
It is the vision of far off things
seen for the silence they hold.
It is the heart after years
of secret conversing
speaking out loud in the clear air.
It is Moses in the desert
fallen to his knees before the lit bush.
It is the man throwing away his shoes
as if to enter heaven
and finding himself astonished,
opened at last,
fallen in love with solid ground.
“God’s Comfort, I Am”
The sun shifted through the trees creating changing prisms of light as we walked. My goddaughter is visiting from Uganda and suddenly every flower, rock, and stick on our walk seems more stunning through her four-year-old eyes. My mind wandered to twenty years ago when I learned I was going to become a mother. My growing pregnant belly and our collection of baby items symbols of the change ahead. I hadn’t considered that a new baby was only the start of the change to come, and this year had marked another change in my motherhood journey as my daughter moved to a different continent to attend university. As we walked down the road my goddaughter's laughter and bare feet skipping down the road brought my mind back into the present. A reminder that change in this world is a promise not merely a possibility.
Yellow East African Weaver birds fill the air changing the sounds around us as they call and respond to each other. Their bright yellow feathers caught my eye and drew my gaze toward them, much like I’m sure Moses’ gaze shifted toward the unchanging bush consumed by fire. A command and then a voice of comfort saying, “I Am…” Later these same words of comfort God offers His people in the wilderness when their lives are uprooted from Egypt, “I Am.” Jesus also describes himself with the same words of comfort, “I Am.”
The phrase is a contrast between creator and created. Creator God describes Himself as “I Am.” Created people use this phrase but always followed by a qualifier of worth, a description of being, or an adjective. At four years old my daughter was sure she would one day declare, “I am… a princess.” Balancing on the curb my goddaughter looked into my eyes, “I am…growing bigger and stronger.” In contrast God’s comfort does not quantify or qualify. It is complete, “I Am.”
Change is the cacophony backdrop for which the powerful and poignant statement, “I Am” brings hope. There may be plagues ahead, but there will also be manna. There may be deserts and tears but there is a promised land because “I Am.”
To the chorus of weaverbirds singing on our walk my goddaughter grips my hand. She is confident to try balancing on the curb, with my steady hands to support her balance. The phrase, “I Am” filled Moses and should fill us with courage we need to become transformed along with creation. A steady hand as we balance change and our own transformation.
The comfort of “I Am” is found not void of change, but within it. Children and aging remind us of the importance of seeking for “I Am.” Weaver birds' melodies change and beckon us into the comfort of “I Am.” The change of the shape of sunlight dancing through trees is a gentle promise that there is comfort found in the great “I Am.” This comfort is not limited by memories of the past, or contained merely in hope to come but is the timeless steady hand the glory of “I Am.”
Prayer:
Jesus, let the change of this earth draw us to the steady comfort and truth that you declare, “I Am.” Let this empower us to be transformed, along with creation for your glory.
Amen
Amie Cross, M.Div.
Chaplain and Missionary
Alumna of Torrey Honors College
Biola University
About the Artwork #1:
Moses and the Burning Bush
Engraving
1884
From the publication entitled The Story of the Bible by Charles Foster
Drawings by F. B. Schell and others
Public Domain
The story of Moses and the Burning Bush begins as Moses is shepherding sheep in the land of Midian, when he witnesses a burning bush on Mt. Horeb (Mount Sinai). The people of Israel had cried out to God to be rescued from their lives as slaves in Egypt. When Moses approached the burning bush, the voice of God called out to him to remove his sandals for he was on hallowed ground. The Lord then revealed to Moses that He would save the Israelites and lead them to the promised land of Canaan. Though Moses was doubtful, God answered with "I AM WHO I AM,” which Moses was to say to the Israelites: “I AM has sent me to you.” The burning bush is interpreted as a symbol of God's presence, power, and holiness, and represents the enduring nature of God's people, who in the face of trials and tribulations, are not consumed by them.
About the Artist #1:
Frederic B. Schell (1838–1905), American draftsman and illustrator, was a special artist for Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper in 1862. In 1863, Frank Leslie assigned Schell to General Ulysses S. Grant’s army at Vicksburg, Mississippi, known as the site of a key Civil War battle. His drawings were published in Century magazine and in Battles and Leaders of the Civil War. After the war he did illustrations for Picturesque Canada and was an art director for Harper & Brothers, served as senior illustrator on The Picturesque Atlas of Australasia (1882), and exhibited drawings in the Grafton Gallery Exhibition of Australian Art in London in 1898.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Frederic_B._Schell
About the Music #1: “We Will Glorify” from the album Together for the Gospel Live II
Lyrics #1:
We will glorify the King of kings.
We will glorify the Lamb.
We will glorify the Lord of lords.
Who is the great I AM.
Lord Jehovah reigns in majesty.
We will bow before His throne.
We will worship Him in righteousness.
We will worship Him alone.
He is Lord of heaven, Lord of earth.
He is Lord of all who live.
He is Lord above the universe.
All praise to Him we give.
Hallelujah to the King of kings.
Hallelujah to the Lamb.
Hallelujah to the Lord of lords.
Who is the great I AM.
About the Composer #1:
Twila Paris (b. 1958) is a contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, author, and pianist. Since 1980, Paris has released twenty-two albums, amassed thirty-three number one Christian radio singles, and was named the Gospel Music Association Female Vocalist of the Year three years in a row. Many of her earlier songs, such as "He Is Exalted," "We Will Glorify," "Lamb of God," and "We Bow Down," are found in many church hymnals around the world. She was inducted into the Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame in 2015.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twila_Paris
About the Performers #1: Sovereign Grace Music with Bob Kauflin, conductor
Sovereign Grace Music has been producing Christ-exalting songs and training for the church for thirty-five years, primarily to serve Sovereign Grace Churches, a family of churches joined together by a common mission to plant churches for the Kingdom of God. Like Charles Wesley, Sovereign Grace Music wishes they had “a thousand tongues to sing our great Redeemer’s praise.”
https://sovereigngracemusic.org/about/
Bob Kauflin serves as the director of Sovereign Grace Music. After receiving a piano performance degree from Temple University (1976), Kauflin traveled for eight years with the contemporary Christian group GLAD as a songwriter, speaker, and arranger. In 1984, he left GLAD to pursue active involvement in a local church associated with Sovereign Grace Churches. In 1997, after twelve years of pastoring, he moved to Gaithersburg, Maryland, where he led corporate worship at Covenant Life Church and became the director of Sovereign Grace Music. Through conferences, seminars, and his blog, Worship Matters, he seeks to equip pastors, musicians, and songwriters in the theology and practice of congregational worship. https://sovereigngracemusic.com/about/bob-kauflin/
About the Music #2: “Worship the Great I Am” from the album Forever Yours
Lyrics #2:
Glory to the Lord Most High.
King of power and light.
Angels sing as Heaven bows,
Earth resounds their song.
Glory to the Lord Most High.
King of power and lLight.
Angels sing as Heaven bows,
Earth resounds their song.
Worthy worthy,
Jesus is worthy.
Praise to the Son of Man,
Glory and honor crown You forever.
Worship the Great I Am.
Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah
Glory to the Prince of Life.
Sacred Son of God,
Risen to glory,
Vowed His returning,
Christ shall come again,
Worthy worthy.
Jesus is worthy.
Praise to the Son of Man.
Those who adore You,
Bow down before You.
Worship the Great I Am.
Oh, we worship you alone, oh God.
You alone.
Glory to the promised One,
Holy Spirit of God.
Pour out upon us power from heaven,
Fill us with Your love.
Worthy worthy,
Jesus is worthy.
Praise to the Son of Man.
Glory and honor crown You forever.
Worship the Great I Am.
Worthy worthy,
Jesus is worthy.
Praise to the Son of Man.
Those who adore You,
Bow down before You.
Worship the Great I Am.
Oh, we worship You, Lord.
You are worthy.
Oh, Lord, You are worthy.
Yeah, yeah.
Oh, we worship,
There's no one like You.
About the Composer:
Walker Beach is the executive worship pastor at Gateway Church, where he strives to fulfill God’s calling in his life as a worship producer. Walker has written numerous internationally released songs such as “You, You Are God,” “One Single Drop,” “Overtaken,” and “We Cry Out.” He has produced and mixed several worship projects, including Klaus Kuehn’s Glory and Gateway Worship’s Living for You, Wake Up the World, and God Be Praised. Walker’s passion is to craft tools that encourage and help worshippers to create songs that bless Jesus and the church everywhere. He has developed curriculum and projects to do just that, including Worship Team Director (Volumes 1, 2, and 3) and Worship Team Trainer.
https://www.praisecharts.com/profiles/479/walker-beach
About the Performer #2:
Kari Jobe (b. 1981) has been established as one of the Christian music industry’s premier female vocalists since her Dove Award–winning, self-titled debut album. She has released three follow-up albums, and has been nominated for a number of additional prestigious accolades. For nearly two decades as a well-respected worship leader, Jobe has been using her gifts to lead people into the presence of God. Originally from Texas and now residing in Nashville, she tours the country with her husband, Cody Carnes, and their two boys, Canyon and Kingston, and they both serve at their home church, The Belonging Co.
https://www.karijobe.com/
About the Poetry & Poet:
David Whyte (b. 1955) is an Anglo-Irish poet. He has said that all of his poetry and philosophy are based on "the conversational nature of reality.” His book The Heart Aroused: Poetry and the Preservation of the Soul in Corporate America (1994) topped the bestseller charts in the United States. Whyte moved to the United States in 1981 and began a career as a poet and speaker in 1986. From 1987, he began taking his poetry and philosophy to larger audiences, including consulting and lecturing on organizational leadership models in the US and UK by exploring the role of creativity in business. He has worked with companies such as Boeing, AT&T, NASA, Toyota, the Royal Air Force, and the Arthur Andersen accountancy group. Whyte has an honorary degree from Neumann College, Pennsylvania, and Royal Roads University, British Columbia, and is Associate Fellow of both Templeton College, Oxford, and Saïd Business School, Oxford. Whyte has written ten volumes of poetry and four books of prose.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Whyte_(poet)
About the Devotion Author:
Amie Cross, M.Div.
Chaplain and Missionary
Alumna of Torrey Honors College
Biola University
Amie Cross has lived in East Africa for thirteen years where she lives and serves with her husband and children. She completed her undergraduate studies at Biola as a part of the Torrey Honors Society cohort and her M.Div. in Community Chaplaincy from Liberty University. She currently serves as the elementary school chaplain for an international school, where she daily learns from her students, colleagues, and parents more about who God is. The opportunity to come alongside others as God carries their burdens and transcends culture, class, race, and injustice to bring peace is a life changing and spiritually transformative.