I Know You

We know what we are, but not what we may be.

William Shakespeare

The other day someone said to me, "Loren, I know you". Isn't that what we all want? Someone to know us? Someone who knows our successes and failures, strengths and weaknesses, hopes and dreams, doubts and fears? Twelve step groups have a saying: "We are as sick as our secrets", and it is wonderful to have people in our lives who know us and accept us just the way we are. But there are also people who think they know us. People who have never spent time with us, shared a meal with us, or truly listened to us. They might have an opinion about us, but they don't really know us. When these people say, "I know you", it's easy to feel judged, pigeon holed, reduced to personality type, a job description, or a number.

But I have good news. There is someone who knows you: every thought, every word, every act, from beginning to end. Someone who knows you better than you know yourself, and loves you more than you can imagine. Brennan Manning describes the love of God this way: “I have been seized by the power of a great affection," and “My deepest awareness of myself is that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ and I have done nothing to earn it or deserve it.”

But it's even better than that!  God doesn't just love you the way you are, He has a plan and purpose for life. He not only sees who you are but who you can be. In Christ, there is grace for the past, faith for today, and hope for the future. In Him, there is the promise of something better, something new, something only God can do. In Romans chapter five, after telling us that God showed His love for us by sending Jesus "while we were yet sinners," Paul goes even further:

For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!"

Just in case we didn't catch it the first time, Paul uses that phrase, "how much more" twice in the chapter to make sure we get the point: attempting to straighten out our own life is like beating a dead horse, but in Christ, we have life, abundant life, the life of a son or daughter with all the rights and privileges that brings. But don't take my word for it. You can read what Paul wrote yourself. So rejoice! You are a loved person becoming a loving person. You are a forgiven person becoming a forgiving person. And you are a reconciled person, being made into the righteousness of Christ. Sometimes through trials, but always with his power and grace.