I AM: Unchanging
"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."
(Hebrews 13:8)
Imagine if you worshipped a deity that was powerful, yet changeable, impulsive, and unpredictable. He could rescind a promise at any time, take back a gift that was given for any reason, or change his mind about what his purpose is. Trust would be a very hard part of your personal relationship with the one that you worshipped if this was the case.
Thankfully, God and all of His attributes are entirely compatible with His immutability, His unchanging nature. "God is not man, that he should ...
I AM: Jealous
"For you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”
-Exodus 34:14
Most of us cringe when we hear of God’s jealousy. It’s not very often that jealousy is presented in an honorable light. But because God proclaims Himself to be a jealous God, it is important that we make every effort to understand this attribute in light of the fullness of His character.
When we think of jealousy as it relates to human emotion or character it is usually played out in an envious desire of others achievements, ...
I AM: Faithful
“For the word of the Lord is upright, and all His work is done in faithfulness.”
-Psalm 33:4
Did you catch that? ALL of His work — everything God does — is done in faithfulness. Every plan He has made, every purpose for your life, every move He makes in this universe fulfills what He has said He will do for His people, because God is faithful. Even when we are unfaithful to God, His own faithfulness is unchanged. It’s everywhere, boundless and unending.
“If we are faithless, He remains faithful— for He cannot ...
I AM: Love
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved”
-Ephesians 2:4-5
Evidence of God’s great love for you is woven throughout every single page of His Word. But often, when we we face trials and hardship and sorrow, we begin to doubt His love. It’s as though we measure the sincerity and strength of His love by the circumstances we face and conclude that if we are experiencing suffering, it must be because He does not love ...
I AM: Sovereign
“I am the LORD, and there is no other,
besides me there is no God;
I equip you, though you do not know me,
that people may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is none besides me;
I am the LORD, and there is no other.
I form light and create darkness,
I make well-being and create calamity,
I am the LORD, who does all these things.”
-Isaiah 45:5-7
God is Sovereign
Sovereign is one of those words that we “know” but don’t always fully understand. When we use it to describe or define God, we may initially think we understand ...
I AM: Holy
“Who will not fear, O Lord,
and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy…”
-Revelation 15:4
When we say that God is holy we are referring to His inexhaustible greatness and His unblemished character. God cannot be charged with wrong, because He cannot be wrong. His very nature does not allow it. He is completely set apart from His creation. There is no one and nothing like Him.
“To whom then will you compare Me,
that I should be like him? says the Holy One.”
-Isaiah 40:25
As we study the character of God we cannot fail ...
I AM: Yahweh (And a giveaway)
I AM: Yahweh
Dear one, I do not know what road your heart has taken through this journey of loss. Perhaps, you feel as though you are drowning in bitterness and anger, or maybe you have shut yourself off to the world because feeling nothing seems better than feeling the weight of this heart-breaking sorrow. Maybe you find that you have been isolating yourself, because you are tired of the reminders of new life all around you when you had to say goodbye to your own precious little one. Maybe it seems like no one understands the pain you’ve been through so ...
Strong Sister
by Kellye Tilford
Strong Sister,
I do not know where my words are [physically] finding you; curled up on a plaid couch with mix-matched pillows, or up at 3 a.m. with tear stained cheeks, clutching tightly your sacred memories. I do not know where my words are [emotionally] finding you; in pure anger at the hand dealt you & withdrawing from all of your norms, or desperately seeking & choosing joy as you rebuild your new norms. I do not know if my words find you tugging at the robe of King Jesus, begging Him to make sense of it all, or if you are ...
My Hope Mommies Retreat Experience
The Hope Mommies Retreat in 2014 was announced late in 2013, and I had only recently been connected with the group online when I saw the announcement. I had looked through the FAQs, worship leaders, and speaker tabs, but I was still on the fence about attending.
What would the retreat look like? Would it just be a bunch of women sitting around crying and telling their sad stories? What if I felt uncomfortable sharing? What if they forced me to get up and share anyways?
I had a lot of questions.
I ended up being one of the “last minute...
Empty Holidays; Hopeful Holidays
I remember my first Thanksgiving without my daughter. She had only been gone a few weeks, and I physically ached with missing her. A casual comment before the meal began: "We're all here..." and the silence as that comment sunk in sent me out door, on a long walk through a drizzling rain, arguing, praying and crying out to the Lord.
Holidays are how we mark family growth. Pictures, memories, meals, chaos -- when you think back on childhood, don't most of your poignant memories surround the holidays? As a parent, we dream of turkey handprint paintings, introducing ...
