Choose to See the I AM

Last week I stated that my intention is to choose to see my Father all around me, in the details. In every detail, in all the details, as a matter of fact. It is a choice, isn’t it? Over all these years, it is clear the alternative is to ‘choose’ to see … Sam … in all the details.

We live in a God-saturated world. It is simply our choice to see it this way, or not. God Almighty called himself “I Am” to Moses. So I can choose to live in an “I Am-Saturated world,” or an “I wannabe–saturated world.” My choice is your choice: see and serve the great “I Am,” or see and serve the little “wannabe I am.”

This is what happened at the Tower of Babel:

“Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves ….” (Gen. 11:4)

For you and for me it would read more like: “Come let me build a business, a family, a fortune, a reputation, a success, a legacy, for ourselves.”

Ugh.

Babel was ancient Babylon. Throughout the Biblical story, Babylon came to represent a culture of “I wannabe ‘I am.’” Daniel and his friends, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, were living in Babylon, surrounded by a culture and a king who epitomized the “I wannabe ‘I Am.’”

When the King demanded they conform to the culture, and bow down to his “I am” stature, they said to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O King, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” (Dan. 3:16-18)

“The God we serve is able to, he will, but even if he does not … we will choose to trust him.”

I can see no downside in choosing to see Jesus in all my details. Last week I thanked him for a poop bag and a Sports Illustrated magazine. Ridiculous, perhaps. But if I choose to thank Jesus in these seemingly random, pleasant details, I will be training myself to see him in the not-so-pleasant details. It will then be much more natural to see him in the hurtful and even horrible details.

My trust will increase; my anxiety and fear will decrease.

But if I only try to see him when that hurtful or horrible detail hits me, my belated choice will likely fall short of any real comfort. I will be trying to manufacture trust. This simply doesn’t work.

You can choose, you know. It’s your choice. See Jesus or see yourself. See Jesus, serve Jesus, or see and serve yourself. I am choosing to join Joshua:

“But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates (Babylon), or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” (Jos. 24:15, Babylon added)