I am.

The front of Kawaiaho'o Church in Oahu

God says, "I am." It seems like an incomplete sentence but it says so much! "I am. There is no other. I matter and what I make matters, and that would be you." Because if all this is true, then everything you create, make and do matters as much as the Maker who made you. Think on this.

This concept of God and your purpose for existence is foundational to your understanding of self . The Bible is not some archaic, non-relatable book. It is a story of the first people as they learned to relate to a Holy God. There are cultural differences but His character and nature is there and so is yours, because after all you are human, made in the image of God to be occupied with joy and do wonderful things. You don't have to be famous, creative, inventive, or work your life away to be important. You're already important because God said so.

You can't build anything else that lasts until you first start building on this. Jesus Christ, our cornerstone. Speaking of stones, I just finished writing a magazine article that made reference to the oldest church in Oahu, "The Kawaiaha’o Church." Its stones are made from the local coral reef, cemented together in the 1840's. Spend some time googling how it was made. It's not legal anymore, but look at what a work of art these natives left us! But it's more than art, it's a building in which people continue to worship and it's lasted!

I can't give my article away yet, but I can tell you that is was a beautiful picture of the verse where Peter reminds us of how we are living stones, built up together for God's glorious purpose. We are to build one another up in love: families, friends, communities and churches. I hope you are spending your summer, resting, relaxing, working, and encouraging one another to grow.

The inside of Kawaiaha'o Church