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I Am Not But I Know I Am: Welcome to the Story of God
We wear ourselves out trying to be smarter, bigger, the center of attention. But dynamic communicator Louie Giglio’s latest book puts success back in perspective. When John the Baptist said that he must decrease while Jesus must increase, he was expressing the secret to astonishing freedom…and incredible rest. This book will teach you the rich, meaningful lifestyle of being small. Free from the worries that used to strangle you, you’ll radiate the power of the God who is all the things you aren’t!
I am not , but God knows my name.
I am not , but He has pursued me in His love.
I am not , but I know the Creator of the universe.
I am not , but I know I AM!
If you see life as your own one-act play and history as your story, you could be in for a rude awakening when the curtain finally closes on your tiny tale—and you discover that life wasn’t all about you after all.
The real story of life is God— I AM— the main character and true star of time and eternity. He is at center stage in all of Creation, and He wants you to know Him by name. Knowing I AM means embracing your smallness in light of His greatness.
Savor the true meaning of life as you learn to work and rest in His power, spending your life for what lasts forever—the unending glory that is God’s alone.
Story Behind the Book
Louie Giglio recognizes a world and culture that keeps pushing us to be bigger, to be known, to be on top, to be at the center of everything. He encourages those who know how to right-size it all. Instead of pumping up their own programs, agendas, ideas, and plans, their goal is to keep getting smaller in order for Jesus to get bigger. Regarding themselves in relation to Jesus, they have the same goal John the Baptist “He must increase, I must decrease.”
I am not , but God knows my name.
I am not , but He has pursued me in His love.
I am not , but I know the Creator of the universe.
I am not , but I know I AM!
If you see life as your own one-act play and history as your story, you could be in for a rude awakening when the curtain finally closes on your tiny tale—and you discover that life wasn’t all about you after all.
The real story of life is God— I AM— the main character and true star of time and eternity. He is at center stage in all of Creation, and He wants you to know Him by name. Knowing I AM means embracing your smallness in light of His greatness.
Savor the true meaning of life as you learn to work and rest in His power, spending your life for what lasts forever—the unending glory that is God’s alone.
Story Behind the Book
Louie Giglio recognizes a world and culture that keeps pushing us to be bigger, to be known, to be on top, to be at the center of everything. He encourages those who know how to right-size it all. Instead of pumping up their own programs, agendas, ideas, and plans, their goal is to keep getting smaller in order for Jesus to get bigger. Regarding themselves in relation to Jesus, they have the same goal John the Baptist “He must increase, I must decrease.”
176 pages, Hardcover
First published April 26, 2005
145 people are currently reading
1815 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 134 reviews
November 2, 2011
This book was a fairly quick and easy read, but a great reminder that we are all just small parts in God's big story. The story is not about me, in fact the author states that we all should have name tags reading, "i am not" in order to remind us of our smallness in relation to The Great I AM.
I was also challenged more and more with trusting God. That He is who He says He is, which is way bigger, more powerful, and in control of every little detail than I give him credit for.
Just a little taste:
Overall: Interesting, thought provoking. Challenged my thinking. But it was nothing earth shattering. If you are wanting a book that keeps your focus on Him and "the Story of God" and our place in it, but will not require every last available brain cell you have, this would be a good option. Perhaps best read as a morning devotional type book, to start the day off with right thinking of who we are and what our purpose is: to make much of Him.
I was also challenged more and more with trusting God. That He is who He says He is, which is way bigger, more powerful, and in control of every little detail than I give him credit for.
Just a little taste:
"When I live like I'm privileged, I have lost the plot. In other words, when I start acting like I deserve a certain outcome or a higher standard of life, I have failed to strike the fatal blow to self and am living like I actually have rights in this world apart from God.
When I am demanding, I have lost the plot, insisting that God and others meet my needs on the timetable that I see fit.
When I act pompous, I have lost the plot, thinking that I am somebody while only proving that I haven't had a good look at God today.
When I crumble under the pressure, I have lost the plot, declaring that the outcome of life rests squarely on my shoulders, not His.
When I start protecting, I have lost the plot, marking turf as though it were actually mine and forgetting that everything I have comes from above.
When I crave the spotlight for myself, I have lost the plot, losing sight of the story line and the on true Star. And every time I do it I waste one of life's fleeting chances to make my life truly count by amplifying Him.
When I fail to celebrate the successes of others who are living for His fame, I have lost the plot, thinking that possibly we are on different teams when we actually share supporting roles in the same story.
When I dwell on feelings of being unloved, unnoticed, or insignificant, I have lost the plot, abandoning the miracle of knowing God on a first-name basis."
Overall: Interesting, thought provoking. Challenged my thinking. But it was nothing earth shattering. If you are wanting a book that keeps your focus on Him and "the Story of God" and our place in it, but will not require every last available brain cell you have, this would be a good option. Perhaps best read as a morning devotional type book, to start the day off with right thinking of who we are and what our purpose is: to make much of Him.
August 8, 2019
Shortly after starting this book, I gave it away. It’s since been passed on twice. I just finished my “new” copy and am willing to give it away again. Who wants it? Just know you won’t be the same after starting it! :)
August 19, 2019
I absolutely love Louie Giglio as a preacher. I have a shortlist of church podcasts that I do my best to listen to on a weekly basis and so I consider LG as one of my pastors. So as I read this book, I could hear his voice in every line.
That said, I think I like him better as a preacher than as an author. Maybe it was that or maybe it was because so much of what I read here I have also heard from him in his weekly messages, but this book did not blow me away as I had hoped it would. Perhaps it was just that my expectations were so high. This book is good. Very good. I had it shortlisted as one of the best books I would read this year and it is not that, but it is definitely worth the read.
That said, I think I like him better as a preacher than as an author. Maybe it was that or maybe it was because so much of what I read here I have also heard from him in his weekly messages, but this book did not blow me away as I had hoped it would. Perhaps it was just that my expectations were so high. This book is good. Very good. I had it shortlisted as one of the best books I would read this year and it is not that, but it is definitely worth the read.
November 27, 2024
This is a great book if you need to know if God really cares. It’s great as an audiobook, read by the author who is a fantastic public speaker. Louie is one of my favorites, as he seems to share with me, this utter elation for God’s glory hidden in nature. It’s a beautiful short story.
March 30, 2010
I Am Not But I Know I Am by Louie Giglio
A review by Adam B.R. Clarke
I have to say I was a little disappointed about this book. I found it to be a little repetitive in its content, and too simplistic. After watching the Passion Talk DVD’s, it seemed like I heard this before. If I hadn’t watched the series first, the book probably would have had more of an impact.
The main point to take from the book is that when God declares himself “I Am” to Moses, God is “I Be.” The phrase “I Am” translates to “Be” and when, as Giglio points out, we come to an understanding of that, God become much bigger then we could ever imagine. We need to come to an understanding that God is big and we are really, really small. Embracing the idea of smallness needs to be more than a one time proposition, or settling to us, it needs to be a daily sacrifice to God. We need to sacrifice our pride and realize that God’s story was already in process before He ever created humanity, and He created us to worship Him, not ourselves. Everything God does, He does to glorify himself, so that we may be reminded about the wonderful mystery that He is.
I did enjoy the breakdown of “Be,” and its new found understanding as a prefix in beloved, or became. Essentially, God is saying I am love, or I came. This changes as Giglio works through the beatitudes, so that they become “Be Attitudes”
Even though it is a quick read, my suggestion would be to watch the Passion Talk series as the visuals enhance the teaching that the book provides.
A review by Adam B.R. Clarke
I have to say I was a little disappointed about this book. I found it to be a little repetitive in its content, and too simplistic. After watching the Passion Talk DVD’s, it seemed like I heard this before. If I hadn’t watched the series first, the book probably would have had more of an impact.
The main point to take from the book is that when God declares himself “I Am” to Moses, God is “I Be.” The phrase “I Am” translates to “Be” and when, as Giglio points out, we come to an understanding of that, God become much bigger then we could ever imagine. We need to come to an understanding that God is big and we are really, really small. Embracing the idea of smallness needs to be more than a one time proposition, or settling to us, it needs to be a daily sacrifice to God. We need to sacrifice our pride and realize that God’s story was already in process before He ever created humanity, and He created us to worship Him, not ourselves. Everything God does, He does to glorify himself, so that we may be reminded about the wonderful mystery that He is.
I did enjoy the breakdown of “Be,” and its new found understanding as a prefix in beloved, or became. Essentially, God is saying I am love, or I came. This changes as Giglio works through the beatitudes, so that they become “Be Attitudes”
Even though it is a quick read, my suggestion would be to watch the Passion Talk series as the visuals enhance the teaching that the book provides.
April 22, 2012
Totally loved this book. To be honest, it took me a while to get into it, simply because I've heard excerpts from the first few chapters SO MANY TIMES it wasn't as striking to me as it should have been. However, once I got past the familiar parts, I loved it. I feel like I've been learning so much of what Giglio shares in this book ~ the whole concept of what I've heard referred to as "appropriate smallness" ~ over the past several months in my life. As Dr. Ray Pritchard says, "It's not about me. It's not about now. It's all about Him. It's all about eternity." Those four simple sentences provide a pretty concise summary for this whole book.
Highlights for me: deepening my understanding of the importance of observing the Sabbath as a means of reminding ourselves that God is in control and His story is not dependent on me or my efforts; learning that Giglio's dad is responsible for the original Chick-fil-A logo (how cool!); and having Giglio reaffirm my long-held belief that, in his words, "You don't have to be a preacher like John or Paul, or a missionary, or a worship leader, a Christian record label-type, or a church worker. In fact, you may even have a better shot at amplifying His glory if you're not any of those things...how cool is it when people in every walk of life do what they do with a greater purpose in mind?"
I think every Christ-follower would benefit from reading this book.
Highlights for me: deepening my understanding of the importance of observing the Sabbath as a means of reminding ourselves that God is in control and His story is not dependent on me or my efforts; learning that Giglio's dad is responsible for the original Chick-fil-A logo (how cool!); and having Giglio reaffirm my long-held belief that, in his words, "You don't have to be a preacher like John or Paul, or a missionary, or a worship leader, a Christian record label-type, or a church worker. In fact, you may even have a better shot at amplifying His glory if you're not any of those things...how cool is it when people in every walk of life do what they do with a greater purpose in mind?"
I think every Christ-follower would benefit from reading this book.
July 18, 2017
I think Giglio found every possible way to convey the same thought over and over again. The message was nice, but I wish the writing had been more stimulating.
Read
March 8, 2019"Life is the tale of two stories, one tiny and frail, the other eternal and enduring. The tiny one, the story of us, is as brief as the blink of an eye. Yet somehow our infatuation with our own little story—and our determination to make it as big as we possibly can—blinds us to the massive God Story that surrounds us on every side."
"And right now, He desires to do huge, God-sized things through you, if you’re ready to abandon the quest of making more of self and to embrace the miracle of being small, yet knowing His name."
"And right now, He desires to do huge, God-sized things through you, if you’re ready to abandon the quest of making more of self and to embrace the miracle of being small, yet knowing His name."
August 28, 2019
Reads like a lot of the messages I have heard from him. The personal stories add flavour and depth to his message though, and makes it 4* not 3
January 29, 2013
The small book with the quirky title, I Am Not but I Know I Am, written by Louie Giglio and published by Multnomah Publishing attempts to champion the virtues of humility while glorying in the enormity of God. For some, maybe it succeeds. For me, it failed miserably.
My introduction to Giglio came via the first chapter of I Am Not but I Know I Am, which read much more like fiction than it should. I confess that I know nothing of his church nor the Passion conferences that he organizes. Yet, in this first chapter, Giglio tells a story in which he begins jogging one morning in New York City and by paying little attention to his surroundings, he winds up jogging down the middle of a freeway with cars passing on both sides of him. Suddenly, he is being hailed by to of New York's finest and he has no clue why!
Come on. Really? You didn't realize that you were running down the middle of a freeway? To me that really just sounds like a cool segue into your point. Something smells strange, and I think it is evangelistic exaggeration.
Then there comes the St. Paul's Cathedral tale that morphs into Giglio stereotyping while simultaneously divining the lives of an Italian family he sees there.
As for Mom, I guessing that her story on most days is whatever is on the other end of the phone, whatever the latest raging topic is between her friends. It's like somehow she's telling me something without saying a word...I wonder if she knows that God invented the stuff in Botox and that he loves her with or without it.
On the surface, the theology seems solid. The whole premise of the book is simple: God is God. We are not. Yet, at times, Giglio drifts off into hipsterville and says something akin to what Joel Osteen might say.
The Almighty believes in you. He wants to constantly affirm you. But He will never deceive you by telling you that you are more than you are.
I'm not totally convinced that God longs to constantly affirm me. As a faithful Father, he obligates Himself to correct us and punish us and not simply say that we are good enough and strong enough. God is not Stuart Smalley.
Yet, I hoped it would get better. I actually thought it did until I ran into Giglio's use of the "One word Bible study method" in John 1:14. There, the Bible reads, "And the word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." Now, permit me to quote a portion of what the pastor of Passion City Church in Atlanta, Georgia writes about the word beheld:
...we BE held. We - little-bitty you and me - put our arms out to touch and hold the Son of God. Embracing Him. Holding on to Him. Squeezing to our chests the very Creator of the world.
And notice how the BE in Be-held goes both ways.
First, "we BE held," meaning tiny I am nots like you and me get to put our arms around the great I AM. But just as astonishing, we see that "BE held" - a beautiful picture of the God of the universe carefully wrapping His great arms of grace around you and me.
Grammatically, theologically, hermeneutically, I'm not sure that any of this works. Properly defined, the word beheld means to, "see or observe (someone or something, especially of remarkable or impressive nature)". The word beheld gives us no impression of "squeezing to our chests he very Creator of the world." Neither does it intimate Him wrapping His arms around us.
On the surface the theology seems solid, but after brushing away the quirkiness, it comes across like just a bunch of hipster language for a very basic, yet potentially deep thought.
I had trouble finishing the book, but the silver lining came in the very last chapter entitled, "You Can Trust Him". It is a sincere, no frills account of a family tragedy that rises above the rest of the book and flows with earnestness.
If Giglio wrote the entire book like he did the final chapter, it would be excellent. Instead, it serves as a shining jewel sitting atop a tarnished crown.
My introduction to Giglio came via the first chapter of I Am Not but I Know I Am, which read much more like fiction than it should. I confess that I know nothing of his church nor the Passion conferences that he organizes. Yet, in this first chapter, Giglio tells a story in which he begins jogging one morning in New York City and by paying little attention to his surroundings, he winds up jogging down the middle of a freeway with cars passing on both sides of him. Suddenly, he is being hailed by to of New York's finest and he has no clue why!
Come on. Really? You didn't realize that you were running down the middle of a freeway? To me that really just sounds like a cool segue into your point. Something smells strange, and I think it is evangelistic exaggeration.
Then there comes the St. Paul's Cathedral tale that morphs into Giglio stereotyping while simultaneously divining the lives of an Italian family he sees there.
As for Mom, I guessing that her story on most days is whatever is on the other end of the phone, whatever the latest raging topic is between her friends. It's like somehow she's telling me something without saying a word...I wonder if she knows that God invented the stuff in Botox and that he loves her with or without it.
On the surface, the theology seems solid. The whole premise of the book is simple: God is God. We are not. Yet, at times, Giglio drifts off into hipsterville and says something akin to what Joel Osteen might say.
The Almighty believes in you. He wants to constantly affirm you. But He will never deceive you by telling you that you are more than you are.
I'm not totally convinced that God longs to constantly affirm me. As a faithful Father, he obligates Himself to correct us and punish us and not simply say that we are good enough and strong enough. God is not Stuart Smalley.
Yet, I hoped it would get better. I actually thought it did until I ran into Giglio's use of the "One word Bible study method" in John 1:14. There, the Bible reads, "And the word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." Now, permit me to quote a portion of what the pastor of Passion City Church in Atlanta, Georgia writes about the word beheld:
...we BE held. We - little-bitty you and me - put our arms out to touch and hold the Son of God. Embracing Him. Holding on to Him. Squeezing to our chests the very Creator of the world.
And notice how the BE in Be-held goes both ways.
First, "we BE held," meaning tiny I am nots like you and me get to put our arms around the great I AM. But just as astonishing, we see that "BE held" - a beautiful picture of the God of the universe carefully wrapping His great arms of grace around you and me.
Grammatically, theologically, hermeneutically, I'm not sure that any of this works. Properly defined, the word beheld means to, "see or observe (someone or something, especially of remarkable or impressive nature)". The word beheld gives us no impression of "squeezing to our chests he very Creator of the world." Neither does it intimate Him wrapping His arms around us.
On the surface the theology seems solid, but after brushing away the quirkiness, it comes across like just a bunch of hipster language for a very basic, yet potentially deep thought.
I had trouble finishing the book, but the silver lining came in the very last chapter entitled, "You Can Trust Him". It is a sincere, no frills account of a family tragedy that rises above the rest of the book and flows with earnestness.
If Giglio wrote the entire book like he did the final chapter, it would be excellent. Instead, it serves as a shining jewel sitting atop a tarnished crown.
February 10, 2013
Before Giglio was in the public eye for his views of public morality he was the driving force behind the Passion movement which has created some the most popular worship music in the last two decades. He is also the pastor of Passion City Church in ATL. He wrote
I Am Not But I Know I AM: Welcome to the Story of God
in 2005, and Waterbrook Multnomah has just re-released it for another run.
The title describes the books central theme. I Am that I Am is the name that Moses heard when he asked on the mountain, "Whom shall I say sent me?" The answer was: Yahweh--I Am that I Am; I Will BE What I Will Be. This God is like no other and while we human creatures sometimes usurp his position, we don't even come close. Giglio tells the story of the God of the Bible, seen in the Old Testament and revealed in Christ. We learn two important truths in this book:
There is a God
You and I are not God.
At times Giglio emphasizes God's transcendence and how utterly mysterious his ways are to us. But this isn't just a tale of the 'Wholly Other." This God has extended to us his love and drawn near to us in Jesus Christ. When Giglio says I am Not but I Know "I Am" he proclaims his trust in the God of creation that he knows through his relationship with Jesus Christ. Because we are not I Am, are job is not to strive, to make a name, to make something happen. Our job is to know and to trust in our God.
I liked this book and think that Giglio makes some great points. However there are some exegetical leaps. Giglio describes the 'One-Word Bible Study Method' which involves going slowly, meditatively through a passage one word at a time (he does in the book with John 1:14). I like this method because a slow attentive reading of scripture avails you to the voice of God. Yet in Giglio's demonstration, he ends up giving a fanciful etymology to the word "Became" (the verb 'to be' = I AM, therefore we are to read it "I AM came"). I don't disagree with Giglio's points but using English etymology (even made up etymology) to understand biblical words and concepts, puts you in danger of reading into the text. What Giglio does more or less responsibly here, could just as easily be misused.
So with some reservations, I recommend this book. I think Giglio's message is on target. This is a quick read but is the sort of message we all need to hear.
Thank you to Waterbrook Multnomah for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review
The title describes the books central theme. I Am that I Am is the name that Moses heard when he asked on the mountain, "Whom shall I say sent me?" The answer was: Yahweh--I Am that I Am; I Will BE What I Will Be. This God is like no other and while we human creatures sometimes usurp his position, we don't even come close. Giglio tells the story of the God of the Bible, seen in the Old Testament and revealed in Christ. We learn two important truths in this book:
There is a God
You and I are not God.
At times Giglio emphasizes God's transcendence and how utterly mysterious his ways are to us. But this isn't just a tale of the 'Wholly Other." This God has extended to us his love and drawn near to us in Jesus Christ. When Giglio says I am Not but I Know "I Am" he proclaims his trust in the God of creation that he knows through his relationship with Jesus Christ. Because we are not I Am, are job is not to strive, to make a name, to make something happen. Our job is to know and to trust in our God.
I liked this book and think that Giglio makes some great points. However there are some exegetical leaps. Giglio describes the 'One-Word Bible Study Method' which involves going slowly, meditatively through a passage one word at a time (he does in the book with John 1:14). I like this method because a slow attentive reading of scripture avails you to the voice of God. Yet in Giglio's demonstration, he ends up giving a fanciful etymology to the word "Became" (the verb 'to be' = I AM, therefore we are to read it "I AM came"). I don't disagree with Giglio's points but using English etymology (even made up etymology) to understand biblical words and concepts, puts you in danger of reading into the text. What Giglio does more or less responsibly here, could just as easily be misused.
So with some reservations, I recommend this book. I think Giglio's message is on target. This is a quick read but is the sort of message we all need to hear.
Thank you to Waterbrook Multnomah for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review
February 16, 2016
"Like me, you have walked through places so deep and dark that your faith is rattled at the core- the place where we secretly and not so secretly, wonder, if God is so great, and the loving I AM, why doesn't he intervene, stop the suffering, end the pain, restore what's lost, halt the March of death? If you haven't come to such a place, you will. Sooner or later we all find ourselves at the midnight crossroad- a crisis of trust, when the sky turns black and life seems to spin out of control." -Louie Giglio
This book was truly beautiful and inspiring!! I am not but I know I am!!
This book was truly beautiful and inspiring!! I am not but I know I am!!
January 23, 2013
Really liked it. I really needed it at this time, and it talked about issues I am going through right now. I am always amazed at how God uses people, books, TV, and other things to speak to us at exactly the right time!
Read
January 13, 2011This book was a great reminder that I am sooooo small compared to God's greatness and bigness. I felt so much peace reading this book.
January 8, 2014
The most life changing book I have ever read!
May 5, 2019
In some ways, THIS is the book for Gen Z. Giglio was a decade ahead of the times in offering what I think is THE solution for the crippling anxiety of Gen Z:
"The pages that follow are an assault on two of the archenemies of the heart, two things I believe all of us wrestle with on some level: stress and meaninglessness."
Stress and meaninglessness ARE the root issues of Anxiety.
And the answer: "God is big. We are not. He is calling the shots, directing the script, and determining the plot. We are not.”
And: "The ultimate expression of smallness is the death of self…one who will 'deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow' Jesus."
Brilliant insights mixed in with horrible exegesis. I can't think of another book that is so uneven. Maybe because it's a series of talks patched together into a book.
I very seldom read books unless they’ve been highly recommended. But I stumbled across this book after I read the Garden of Gethsemane gospel account and was struck by the juxtaposition of Jesus' "I Am" and Peter's "I am not". Giglio's book came up as I googled around. Reading on my Kindle, I liked the intro so much, I ordered the hardback for my teenage daughters. Unfortunately, the rest of the book is very uneven. Some great stuff. Some mediocre. Some downright bizarre.
Giglio’s ‘One-Word Bible Study Method’ comes from a good place (let’s read the Bible slowly and carefully) but results in jaw-droppingly bad exegesis:
As I stared intently into the word dwell, it quickly became apparent that the bulk of this little gem is the word well. And that’s what was on Jesus’s mind as He walked and talked among us. Jesus came to make things new, to make us whole again.
"Became flesh"- BE came. God came. [Is that a true statement? Yes. Is that what became means? NO]
“Beheld his glory” -BE held. I AM held —a beautiful picture of the God of the universe carefully wrapping His great arms of grace around you and me.
“Behold the Lamb of God” BE hold. I AM hold… God’s proclamation that He wanted to wrap His Holy arms around us all—an invitation for us to reach out and take hold of Him.
____________________
Some great insights from Giglio:
Stress, gets a stranglehold on us when we move through life feeling like everything…rests on our shoulders. If we, knowingly or unknowingly, view ourselves as the source of all things for all people, we slowly lose peace of mind and find ourselves staring at the ceiling late into the night trying to figure out how to hold it all together and/or medicating ourselves just to make it through the day.
He desires to do huge, God-sized things through you, if you’re ready to abandon the quest of making more of self and to embrace the miracle of being small, yet knowing His name.
I am not the center of everything. I am not in control. I am not the Source. I am not the solution. I am not all-powerful. I am not calling the shots.
“My name is I am not.” I am not running anything. I am not the head of anything. I am not in charge of anything. I am not the Maker. I am not the Savior. I am not holding it all together. I am not all-knowing.
_______________________________
Worth reading if you can take it with a grain of salt.
"The pages that follow are an assault on two of the archenemies of the heart, two things I believe all of us wrestle with on some level: stress and meaninglessness."
Stress and meaninglessness ARE the root issues of Anxiety.
And the answer: "God is big. We are not. He is calling the shots, directing the script, and determining the plot. We are not.”
And: "The ultimate expression of smallness is the death of self…one who will 'deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow' Jesus."
Brilliant insights mixed in with horrible exegesis. I can't think of another book that is so uneven. Maybe because it's a series of talks patched together into a book.
I very seldom read books unless they’ve been highly recommended. But I stumbled across this book after I read the Garden of Gethsemane gospel account and was struck by the juxtaposition of Jesus' "I Am" and Peter's "I am not". Giglio's book came up as I googled around. Reading on my Kindle, I liked the intro so much, I ordered the hardback for my teenage daughters. Unfortunately, the rest of the book is very uneven. Some great stuff. Some mediocre. Some downright bizarre.
Giglio’s ‘One-Word Bible Study Method’ comes from a good place (let’s read the Bible slowly and carefully) but results in jaw-droppingly bad exegesis:
As I stared intently into the word dwell, it quickly became apparent that the bulk of this little gem is the word well. And that’s what was on Jesus’s mind as He walked and talked among us. Jesus came to make things new, to make us whole again.
"Became flesh"- BE came. God came. [Is that a true statement? Yes. Is that what became means? NO]
“Beheld his glory” -BE held. I AM held —a beautiful picture of the God of the universe carefully wrapping His great arms of grace around you and me.
“Behold the Lamb of God” BE hold. I AM hold… God’s proclamation that He wanted to wrap His Holy arms around us all—an invitation for us to reach out and take hold of Him.
____________________
Some great insights from Giglio:
Stress, gets a stranglehold on us when we move through life feeling like everything…rests on our shoulders. If we, knowingly or unknowingly, view ourselves as the source of all things for all people, we slowly lose peace of mind and find ourselves staring at the ceiling late into the night trying to figure out how to hold it all together and/or medicating ourselves just to make it through the day.
He desires to do huge, God-sized things through you, if you’re ready to abandon the quest of making more of self and to embrace the miracle of being small, yet knowing His name.
I am not the center of everything. I am not in control. I am not the Source. I am not the solution. I am not all-powerful. I am not calling the shots.
“My name is I am not.” I am not running anything. I am not the head of anything. I am not in charge of anything. I am not the Maker. I am not the Savior. I am not holding it all together. I am not all-knowing.
_______________________________
Worth reading if you can take it with a grain of salt.
May 3, 2022
1.5.
If LG has a point in this book, it must be as "small" as he is, because I sure as sh** don't see it. And it's this kind of pointlessness (along with rampant self-righteous hypocrisy and introvert-shaming superficiality -gotta plaster on that Joel Osteen smile instead of "goin around lookin sour all the time") that made me bail on organized religion and become a rogue Christian.
Consider the last time you heard anyone make any of the following statements:
"The world revolves around me."
"IT (whatever it may be) is all about me."
"My problems/ideas/ambitions are more important than other people's."
Could it be, as in my experience, uh, never?
Only the highly toxic among us even think that way let alone come out and say it. Oh, and I almost forgot my favorite probably non-existent scenario: Somebody's bitching about a bunch of crap they're going through, and then coda it with, "And I'm the only one." The truth of the matter is that in such rants people rarely if ever hazard a guess as to how many other people are going through what they are, yet a common self-righteous (not always from a Christian) chastisement is, "Listen, you think you're the only one with problems?" Answer: Uh, no, you self-righteous POS.
My whole point is, as fallible human beings we all occasionally become very wrapped up in our own problems and therefore miss out on opportunities to help others, and at other times when things are going well for us become rather full of ourselves, but most of us are not so perspective-impaired (at least not permanently) that we think we're better or more important than other people. Yet we're big, not small. Big-hearted, generous, magnanimous. And why? Because we were made in the image of almost unfathomably omnipotent, omniscient Creator, to whom everything that has ever happened to everyone who has ever lived on this earth and wherever else in the universe He may have His creatures stashed is a VERY big deal. (I do agree with Joel Osteen about us being "children of the most high God.") God is not a narcissistic bully of a god who needed to create a race of peonic dog turds with small, pathetically insignificant lives so that He could feel bigger in comparison. There are already enough toxic people in the world trying to make you feel small-why would anyone want to do it to themselves and their attitude towards life?
Anyway, I listened to about half of this and decided I better stop before I get any more un-Christianly pissed off.
P.S. Maybe it's just me, but when coming across a magnificent creation like St Paul's Cathedral, isn't more humble to not even think of yourself at all in comparison to it than to think of how small you are next to it?
If LG has a point in this book, it must be as "small" as he is, because I sure as sh** don't see it. And it's this kind of pointlessness (along with rampant self-righteous hypocrisy and introvert-shaming superficiality -gotta plaster on that Joel Osteen smile instead of "goin around lookin sour all the time") that made me bail on organized religion and become a rogue Christian.
Consider the last time you heard anyone make any of the following statements:
"The world revolves around me."
"IT (whatever it may be) is all about me."
"My problems/ideas/ambitions are more important than other people's."
Could it be, as in my experience, uh, never?
Only the highly toxic among us even think that way let alone come out and say it. Oh, and I almost forgot my favorite probably non-existent scenario: Somebody's bitching about a bunch of crap they're going through, and then coda it with, "And I'm the only one." The truth of the matter is that in such rants people rarely if ever hazard a guess as to how many other people are going through what they are, yet a common self-righteous (not always from a Christian) chastisement is, "Listen, you think you're the only one with problems?" Answer: Uh, no, you self-righteous POS.
My whole point is, as fallible human beings we all occasionally become very wrapped up in our own problems and therefore miss out on opportunities to help others, and at other times when things are going well for us become rather full of ourselves, but most of us are not so perspective-impaired (at least not permanently) that we think we're better or more important than other people. Yet we're big, not small. Big-hearted, generous, magnanimous. And why? Because we were made in the image of almost unfathomably omnipotent, omniscient Creator, to whom everything that has ever happened to everyone who has ever lived on this earth and wherever else in the universe He may have His creatures stashed is a VERY big deal. (I do agree with Joel Osteen about us being "children of the most high God.") God is not a narcissistic bully of a god who needed to create a race of peonic dog turds with small, pathetically insignificant lives so that He could feel bigger in comparison. There are already enough toxic people in the world trying to make you feel small-why would anyone want to do it to themselves and their attitude towards life?
Anyway, I listened to about half of this and decided I better stop before I get any more un-Christianly pissed off.
P.S. Maybe it's just me, but when coming across a magnificent creation like St Paul's Cathedral, isn't more humble to not even think of yourself at all in comparison to it than to think of how small you are next to it?
July 20, 2025
What a powerful thought! Well written. Helped me so much! Below are some personal takeaways:
God gave Moses a mission, but how would he be able to do it? Moses told God of his inabilities, but the Lord gave five words to help him: “I will be with you.” And God tells us the same thing. Don’t worry about who you are. If He goes with us, then we can trust Him because everything will work out fine.
Moses asked God what he would tell others. God did not have to reply to Moses, but He did. His response to Moses was “I am.” If God is, then Moses is not. Meaning that Moses is not the solution, the all powerful, not calling the shots, and not the Lord. And this is your name and my name as well: “I am not.” I am not running the thing, calling the shots, in charge, holding everything together, or the Lord. God is.
We must realize how big God is, and how small we are.
God created the world. He sustains the stars in place. He is consistent. He has no flaws, no limitations, is timeless, and is all powerful. I am not, but He has created me, purchased me, and sustains me. I am not, but I know the I am. I can be on a first name basis with the great I am.
When they asked John who he was, he could’ve seen it as his moment to shine. Instead he answered more than once, “I am not.” He knew who he was and who God was — so should we.
God rested on the seventh day and gave a day of Sabbath, though He does not need to rest. He commands us to stand still. He wants us to know that He is still God. He does not need our help. He wants us to know that we can sleep and He will take care of things.
We must realize that we are small but God is big. Don’t try to be big. Don’t think the world is on your shoulders and try to be God. Let God be big, and let God be in control.
God gave Moses a mission, but how would he be able to do it? Moses told God of his inabilities, but the Lord gave five words to help him: “I will be with you.” And God tells us the same thing. Don’t worry about who you are. If He goes with us, then we can trust Him because everything will work out fine.
Moses asked God what he would tell others. God did not have to reply to Moses, but He did. His response to Moses was “I am.” If God is, then Moses is not. Meaning that Moses is not the solution, the all powerful, not calling the shots, and not the Lord. And this is your name and my name as well: “I am not.” I am not running the thing, calling the shots, in charge, holding everything together, or the Lord. God is.
We must realize how big God is, and how small we are.
God created the world. He sustains the stars in place. He is consistent. He has no flaws, no limitations, is timeless, and is all powerful. I am not, but He has created me, purchased me, and sustains me. I am not, but I know the I am. I can be on a first name basis with the great I am.
When they asked John who he was, he could’ve seen it as his moment to shine. Instead he answered more than once, “I am not.” He knew who he was and who God was — so should we.
God rested on the seventh day and gave a day of Sabbath, though He does not need to rest. He commands us to stand still. He wants us to know that He is still God. He does not need our help. He wants us to know that we can sleep and He will take care of things.
We must realize that we are small but God is big. Don’t try to be big. Don’t think the world is on your shoulders and try to be God. Let God be big, and let God be in control.
January 28, 2020
A VERY quick and easy read, however, the same points are established ad nauseam. Some chapters were so repetitive that you could’ve skipped the whole chapter and not missed a single point of Giglio’s premise. The book came across as a stream of consciousness as opposed to a purposeful discussion on the joyful premise of “we are small and God is not.” Giglio struggled to make his points clear and persuasive. An example of this was the chapter in which Giglio discusses whether or not God is an egotist. Is a God that demands and requires worship and praise and glory an egotistical god? This is quite an interesting topic of theology and unfortunately Giglio failed to address the topic in a way that did his argument any justice. Finally, Giglio’s personal life stories seemed forced. Bringing personal experience to an argument can bring meaning and real world context, but Giglio’s examples seemed out of place at the best of times. I am directly quoting Giglio’s words here when he is discussing seeing a family of strangers in St. Paul’s cathedral...”I wonder if she knows that God invented the stuff in Botox and that He loves her with or without it.” Yikes. 1 Star.
February 20, 2023
This was my first book by this author and will most likely be my last. I found the tone to be arrogant in some sections of the book particularly his treatment with his observations on a family he saw as tourists but did not personally did not know. He made a lot of unflattering assumptions regarding even the children and I would have preferred he made his points using a generalized description of a fictional family versus using a real family who did not realize they were being scrutinized and later written about, that was a turn off for me. I also found an overall lack of focus and content which I was not expecting. There was no real sense of direction with this book and I did not finish this with any more knowledge than when I first started reading it. The second half of the book was only marginally better than the first half. However, we never got much beyond the fact that God is I Am and humans are am not, which is accurate but I was expecting more depth. Needless to say, I struggled finishing this book and have no plans to read any more books by him.
August 23, 2019
In this book, author Louie Giglio does a wonderful job describing our relationship as one of God's creations to God Himself. So many times we live our lives as the "be all" "end all", yet as Giglio writes, we are just a tiny minuscule part of God's creation. God continues to operate in grand ways whether we recognize it or not. If something happened to us, God would still be God and doing God things. When we finally grasp our place in God's plan, we cannot but begin to bring honor and glory to God. Accepting our unique position of being "I AM NOT" (being not God), yet having the privilege of knowing "I AM" (God Himself) should change our perspective on how we live our lives.
Giglio uses scripture, stories of people in the Bible, and his own experiences to make his point that when we remember who we are in relationship to our creator, we can finally begin to give God all the honor and glory He deserves.
Giglio uses scripture, stories of people in the Bible, and his own experiences to make his point that when we remember who we are in relationship to our creator, we can finally begin to give God all the honor and glory He deserves.
August 4, 2020
I’ve just completed reading this book - ‘I am not but I know I AM’ by Louie Giglo.
It’s an interesting book with a difference approach of writing on the introduction of GOD. As writer puts it “Welcome to the Story of God’. The author describes the attributes of God - I AM or BE and the opposite of our - i am not. Very simple and profoundly written- if we can grasped and embrace it, we can be changed.
It’s an interesting book with a difference approach of writing on the introduction of GOD. As writer puts it “Welcome to the Story of God’. The author describes the attributes of God - I AM or BE and the opposite of our - i am not. Very simple and profoundly written- if we can grasped and embrace it, we can be changed.
September 2, 2021
An incredible book. I struggle with pride (don’t we all?!), but the practicalities of navigating the battle with pride have been so wonderfully written by Louie and make you feel like you’re not alone in this fight! It has helped me so much and given me so much insight on this, as well as equipped me on how to live more for the great Story of God rather than the small story of self. Absolutely wonderful!
October 21, 2023
Little of Louie Giglio’s content is a new concept, but its profound reminders came at an advantageous time for me. Louie and I share the same two primary spiritual pathways that lead us first to wonder and then to worship. I listened to this book while on a nature hike and a scenic drive, which only accentuated the content. I recommend this content to any control freak and any Christ-follower who needs a strong exhale.
April 14, 2025
Encouraging. Challenging. Thought provoking. A really motivating book that points to who God is and who we aren’t. A challenge for God to be more and for us to become less.
Occasionally the book veers into twee-ness and grammatically some of his points can be tenuous but these are minor issues.
Another strength was Giglio’s honesty about his struggles. He doesn’t pretend to be perfect.
I’ll be re-reading this. 100% recommend.
Occasionally the book veers into twee-ness and grammatically some of his points can be tenuous but these are minor issues.
Another strength was Giglio’s honesty about his struggles. He doesn’t pretend to be perfect.
I’ll be re-reading this. 100% recommend.
May 9, 2019
Get to know God through this book.
We think we need to be in control...it doesn't work! Here we learn about the One who is big enough, powerful enough, wise enough to hold the stars in place and intimate enough to meet our every need you have. You can relax and trust the One whose name is I AM!
We think we need to be in control...it doesn't work! Here we learn about the One who is big enough, powerful enough, wise enough to hold the stars in place and intimate enough to meet our every need you have. You can relax and trust the One whose name is I AM!
June 17, 2019
The author starts out with Moses at the burning bush asking God's name. God responds I Am who I Am. Later Giglio records John the Baptist saying, I am not but the one after me is the I Am. This book is a one word study of the I AM. The book challenges us "to exchange the starring role in your small story for a supporting role in our God's epic adventure."
June 26, 2018
I Am sent me but I am not I Am ... but if I’m willing to humble myself He can make me look like I Am even though I’m not. And such is the mystery of God when Moses says, “Who should I tell them sent me?” Thousands of years later we struggle with remembering I am not God but I Am is.
May 11, 2022
Louie nailed it! This material was truth I needed to hear afresh. This book is one that my 12 year old son and I are reading separately. After reading this you will be summoned to declare i am not. Great job.
July 26, 2023
Great, thought provoking book. Giglio leads the reader down the path of understanding our role in Gods story.
Would have gone up to 4.5 stars if possible.
You need to take your time with this one though and absorb and understand what he is putting out there for you.
Would have gone up to 4.5 stars if possible.
You need to take your time with this one though and absorb and understand what he is putting out there for you.
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