DAY 93 - BACK TO THE START
ZACH ATWOOD, YA EVENTS & OPERATIONS TEAM LEAD
“‘Who are you?’ they asked. ‘Just what I have been telling you from the beginning,’ Jesus replied.” John 8:25
Maybe it’s my ADHD, maybe it’s just me, but I’m one of those people that’s really good at starting a book and losing interest after 3-days of reading. I feel like I have 15+ books sitting on my bookshelf that I’ve started but was never able to finish…
The worst part is that every once in a while I get that itch to start reading a particular book again, but I cannot remember anything from those first few chapters I read 3 months before. So I have to go back to the start and I read. I stop. I forget. I get excited. I have to go back to the start…. It’s really a vicious cycle.
I feel like a lot of times, the way I approach some of these books is how I approach my relationship with God: I’m in. I get distracted by the world. I download TikTok. I feel lost with God… I restart. I’m ready to go. I begin to worry. I stress eat some ice cream. I feel like I can’t hear Him…
In this story in John 8, we find Jesus telling people around Him who He is and what He is here on earth to do for the 876th time. His ministry has been up a running for a little while now, but some people are still confused (or some Pharisees are still angry) and really don’t know who He is or what He is all about.
Is this not us? We so often forget who Jesus is and why He’s here in our lives. We’ve received salvation, we’ve heard of His news and we’ve experienced some stuff by His power, but we get caught up in the world and lose sight of who He truly is. But Jesus has the answer for them and for us.
He just tells them he was who He said he was from the start (maybe it’s just me, but I envision Jesus snapping his hands in a z-formation after saying this).
When we feel lost, when we feel confused and bogged down by the world, we just have to declare who He is to us by going back to who He was when we met Him. We need to remember the story of our transition from life to death so we can see His love, His compassion, and His grace He has for us.
Young Adult, maybe you find yourself in the same boat I’m in; brought down by life, confused by all the voices around you, and scared for what is to come. God wants you to remember who He is by remembering where you first met Him. So take some time today and go back to your first conversation with Him. Go back to your salvation moment and see what clarity and peace He brings to your present.