"I am Human"

Photo Credit: Scott Swigart- Titled, "Future So Bright"

I went through counseling on a couple of occasions. The first time was for about 1 year and the second time was about 1 ½ years. The first time required a lot of homework which I was not excited about. I know I was not fully committed to that type of therapy. I would meet with a therapist and every so often I would check in with the psychiatrist. I had not given my life to the Lord at this time. I guess things had not gotten bad enough because even though I wanted help I didn’t want to commit fully to the program. One day I was talking to the therapist about some of my fears and apprehensions and all of a sudden he made a statement that seemed to lift the weight of the world off my shoulders. He simply said that my imperfections were normal because after all I am human. It was like that was a new revelation to me. Why couldn’t I see that before? I really thought my troubles were all over. That day became the last day I went to that therapist.

Even though I felt like everything had resolved itself it was soon evident that the relief was only temporary, after all “I am human.” The same statement that brought me such relief now becomes an adversary. Being human is not an answer to any of our problems it is only a profession of our limitations.

(Exodus 3:13, 14) And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 14 And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you.

Moses asked God what he should tell the children of Israel when they ask what His name is, God said, “I Am That I Am, tell them I Am has sent you.” Let’s explore this for a minute. God tells Moses His name is I Am. What does that really mean? Simply this, if your hungry, poor, or sick, I Am is your provision for all these things. Any thing you need He is. When God said His name was “I Am” He was telling the children of Israel that He was their answer to everything. This is profound because we use this so called prefix “I am” a lot when we talk about ourselves. I am hungry, I am broke, I am lost, I am sick, I am great.

When we use “I am” we unconsciously take ownership of our own lives. We become the answer to all of life’s problems. In essence we are making God subservient to us. Think of it this way, when We attach “I am” to ourselves we are innocently saying we are god of our own lives. So the statement “I am human” becomes double trouble because not only am I saying I am god over my own life, I am also saying I am prone to failure. These two reasons are why my success against mental illness was short lived.

God desires to be your “I am.” He desires to make you healthy and prove to you that He is truly your answer to every problem you face. This is why 2 ½ years of secular counseling didn’t pay off for me. I needed “I AM.” After receiving Christ as my Lord, my battle with mental illness became His battle. I had declined lordship over my own life because I could no longer depend on being human for the answer. Only I Am could do that. Please don’t get hung up on saying “I am,” but it is something to think about. Let God take over your life. Simply pray out loud, “Lord Jesus, I need you to be my “I AM.” Being human is not the answer. Forgive me my sin. Wash me clean. Come into my heart and be Lord and Savior over my life, in Jesus name. Amen.