Who Am I?

"I am a stranger in this place;
I've got a name, but I am just a face,
Sitting in the background, taking up space,
I'm sorry, but I guess that's just my case..."  (taken from a poem by B. Westphal)

A face without a name...or it could be a name without a face.  Day by day do you meet the same people?  Same people at work, same people at the convenience store, or grocery store, or wherever you may happen to visit--do you ever wonder who are they?

Quite a few years ago, I would take my Grandfather to town two or three times a month.  On our excursions he would get his hair cut, get groceries, and run errands that needed done.  Occasionally he would sit in the van as I or someone ran into a business establishment.  He enjoyed immensely watching people come and go on their errands.  Most of them were indeed faces with a name, but they weren't faces or names known to him. 

In Bible class we have a game called, 'Who Am I'.  I have a little figure that I hold up and read descriptions about.  For example, the questions might run like this, 'I am the son of Nun.  I was one of the two men that left Egypt with Moses that entered the Promised land.  I led the people into the Promised Land after Moses died.'  After each question I pause, if the class answers the question and tells me 'Who Am I' (in this case of course it's Joshua) I put the little figure down and move to the next figure who has a separate batch of questions.  The children like the challenge, and it's a good way to review.

Many is the time I've heard preachers use examples of lives from the scriptures.  I remember the first time I heard a preacher use these examples: Abraham was a liar,  Joshua had a faith problem, David was an adulterer, Peter denied Christ (or he had a language problem)...there were several of these examples thrown out for our examination.  The point was that these people were not perfect and God used them even though they were not perfect in his service.

Now, I agree, these people were just flesh and blood.  The scriptures don't hide the fact that they had their faults, but the scriptures don't dwell on the faults of it's heros.  The scriptures just tell the story.

 Has anyone amongst us not told a lie?  Maybe not an in your face life changing lie--maybe not even a totally untrue fact, but perhaps it just moved the facts around a little--lie.  Who amongst us has not on occasion thought within themselves: You want me to do WHAT Lord?!  Or some such thought-- in this place on these questions.  I ask myself, what would God have us focus on in these situations? The weakness of God's servant, or the triumph of that same servant? Yes, I know it could be just splitting dandelion fuzz, but...

Elijah is a prime example. 1Kings19:10  "And he said, I have been very jealous for Jehovah, the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword: and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. "

Again in IKings19:14  Elijah responds with, "And he said, I have been very jealous for Jehovah, the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away."

He is in this account running away from the wicked Queen Jezebel--running as it were, for his life.  We know of course that the Lord tells him in1Kings 19:18  "Yet will I leave me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him."

We know that Elijah recovers from his weak moment and just a few chapters later he confronts the wicked King Ahab and prophesies to him concerning not only the King, but his wicked Queen Jezebel again saying:
 
1Kings 21:20  "Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee, because thou hast sold thyself to do that which is evil in the sight of Jehovah. 21)  Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will utterly sweep thee away and will cut off from Ahab every man-child, and him that is shut up and him that is left at large in Israel: 22)  and I will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat... 23)  And of Jezebel also spake Jehovah, saying, The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the rampart of Jezreel. 24)  Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the birds of the heavens eat."

In casting back in my mind I find myself at times in the same situation as my Grandfather.  I enjoy watching people come and go on their errands.  I don't know what thoughts ran through his mind, but  for myself I do wonder what these people are thinking, what their lives are, where they are going.  Some of them--most of them--will continue on their life's journey.  Many will never stop to consider who they are, or where they are going.  If you were the roving reporter on the street, stopping people and asking them these questions, most would think you were strange...at best.

'Who am I, and where am I going'--?  Christians must be concerned with these questions, not only for themselves, but for other people their in lives. 

I remember a book we used for ladies' class.  It used Job's wife as a negative example of something we wives should not do, or should not be like.  Several years ago someone said in reference to Job's wife, "I surely hope that of all the things I've ever done or said, in the end people don't choose the negative thing(s) from my life that I've done or said to remember me by."

I must agree whole-heartedly.  I don't want the times I've fallen--spiritually--to be the things people define me by.  I don't want my weakness to define who I am or where I am going...or where I have gone.

I am on occasion reminded of Joshua, the great leader.  After the defeat of his army at Ai, he is sure that the children of Israel are about to be slautered by the local people.  He has fallen on his face before the Lord.  He says in effect, 'We're gonna die!'  But Jehovah says to him:

Joshua 7:10 "And Jehovah said unto Joshua, Get thee up; wherefore art thou thus fallen upon thy face? 11)  Israel hath sinned; yea, they have even transgressed my covenant which I commanded them:"


We know the rest of his story.  He got up.  He finished his task.


Halelujah!  What a Saviour!