near & far.

Hey remember when I did this… Peace. (Taken with Instagram...

Sat, 13 Oct 2012 10:47:45 +0300

Hey remember when I did this… Peace. (Taken with Instagram at Pensacola Bay Bridge)

The great I AM

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 19:13:03 +0300

Who am I? If I asked you right now, “Who are you?” What would you say? You might give me your name, you might tell me you’re a cheerleader, a soccer player, a musician, a daughter, a son, a Christian, fill in the blank.

…But that’s not deep enough. At the end of the day when you’ve left the judging eyes and when there’s no expectation for you to perform in a certain way, who are you? When you take off the uniform, when you put down the instrument, when you’re not at family dinner: who are you?

“Identity: the state or fact of remaining the same one or ones, as under varying aspects or conditions” (dictionary.com). Identity is who you are despite all of the variants in your life. You can “be” and do a million different things, but only one thing can truly define you. What holds your identity?

“But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.”

Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:11-15)

Moses was conflicted. He was given a difficult task, and he obviously doubted his ability to accomplish what God asked. His first question to God, “Who am I?” God simply answers, “I will be with you.” That is enough. Period. God knows there’s no real need apart from His power. But Moses continues, “What if they ask for a name?!” At this point, Moses was looking for any excuse to get out of his most important role. I can imagine God being pretty fed up at this point, which is why I believe He might have yelled from inside that burning bush. When I text or facebook, I use all-caps to signify raising my voice. I’m not going to claim that Moses, as the author of Exodus was trying to signify the same thing when he capitalized God’s response, but it is likely that God wanted to make this point clear.

“I AM WHO I AM.” There is no better way to define Him, because He is the defining one. He is the definition, the true identity. Everyone else is identified through and in Him. Whether we want to recognize that or not, God is our Creator. He holds our very being without us knowing it most of the time. Or maybe we do know it, but we just deny it.

We seek the things of this world to define us, because those things immediately satisfy us. They are tangible. We want to feel, touch, see. If we all had a yelling burning bush experience, then maybe we wouldn’t use our friends, sports, family, or school to define us. Maybe then we would turn away from the things that continue to hurt us. No love is like the love of our Father. It is true Love: unconditional, through and through. Not dependent on what we can do or be. It just is. God just is. Nothing can move or shake or change Him. He will always be constant, always be faithful, always be there.

So I ask this question again: “Who are you?” Will you continue to seek the fleeting things of this world to define you? Is it worth it? Is it worth the pain, when you realize that all these things will fade and fail? God is here now and He is waiting patiently for you to call on Him. He is waiting to pick you up from the Pit. He is waiting to hold you close and draw you near. Let go of all the things that you’re holding on to that keep you from holding on to God. He is here: reach out for Him.

"Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither."

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 19:08:27 +0300

“Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.”

- C.S. Lewis

a Kristen Rupert original…

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 19:04:46 +0300

a Kristen Rupert original…

the countdown begins… only 11 more sunsets in my home away...

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 15:39:05 +0200

the countdown begins… only 11 more sunsets in my home away from home. cape town, south africa.

i held one of these.

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 15:30:11 +0300

i held one of these.

So in essence...

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 15:25:38 +0300

colinfrew:

Leading worship is what I have found I do best. It is my favorite thing to do, and the thing that interests me most. It encourages me so much when people affirm this with their compliments. I don’t need the compliments, but they are oh so good. I plan to persue a simple life devoted to singing songs of praise to my God, and doing so with as many as possible. I am so blessed.

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!

you like my bow? 

Fri, 21 Oct 2011 18:25:02 +0300

you like my bow? 

i <3 owls.

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 13:55:48 +0300

i <3 owls.

an ode to mondays:

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 11:11:05 +0300

i need coffee.

coffee is good.

i might be addicted.

don’t judge me…………………

gonna miss the sun…

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 20:12:33 +0300

gonna miss the sun…

my kindle:

Wed, 20 Apr 2011 12:05:47 +0300

is actually really awesome. who knew?! maybe i should appreciate the gifts i’m given! thanks dad =)

the power & the glory

Mon, 18 Apr 2011 11:43:31 +0300

the power & the glory:

my new favorite hang out :)

so there was this one time that fall came during spring time. welcome to south africa.

Mon, 18 Apr 2011 11:37:34 +0300

so there was this one time that fall came during spring time. welcome to south africa.

new music.

Thu, 14 Apr 2011 21:03:42 +0300

aftermath by hillsong united. do it. now.

if you love me, you will buy me these. size 8.

Thu, 31 Mar 2011 14:18:06 +0300

if you love me, you will buy me these. size 8.

things missed:

Thu, 31 Mar 2011 13:34:52 +0300

reese’s (pieces)

“diet” coke

all my books

bbq

the coffee break

florida weather

the rupert ranch

my friends

my youthies

italian food

iphone

my closet (don’t judge)

random jam sessions

my mom’s hugs…

"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world."

Thu, 31 Mar 2011 13:01:25 +0300

““Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.””

- ~Nelson Mandela

the farm is one of my favorite projects here in cape town. this...

Thu, 24 Mar 2011 13:59:00 +0200

the farm is one of my favorite projects here in cape town. this is from a shane’s-eye-view (one of the farm boys). he borrowed my camera for a minute last week.

job 38:1-11

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 10:01:09 +0200

who am i, God?

did i know?

did i see?

did i sow?

where was i, Lord?

when the light first?

when the stars shone?

when the sea burst?

why do i presume, Father?

to lay the earth’s foundation?

to know of its dimension?

to claim all of creation?

i brace ~~myself~~…

…You are my joy

all that is good

my peace

all that is beautiful

my love

all that is merciful

my hope

but above all is Grace…

…above all the singing stars & the shouting angels, You are…

who am i, God?