God Calls You By Name

"Thus says the Lord, "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; for I have called you by your name; you are mine." - Isaiah 43:1

We hear so many words during the day that we hardly give significance to them, but to the ancient Hebrews, words were vital. In the book of Genesis during creation, the author wrote that God spoke the world into existence. He said "let there be light" and there was light. His words made it happen. Even the names the Hebrews gave their children were of the utmost importance. The angel Gabriel was sent from Heaven directly to Joseph to give him the name he would give the baby Mary was carrying. To the Hebrews, words were life. They spoke truth and held promises. That's why the gospel is called The Word of God and Jesus Christ is the Word made flesh, in other words, the promise of God made reality. Therefore, your own name is of vital importance. It is not only what your family and friends call you, but the essence of who you are to God. And just like the Word of God becoming flesh took so many years to come to pass, so are you a developing story to the Lord. When you read this verse, I want you to know that no matter who you are and what you have done, God has redeemed you so you should not be afraid of anything. You may be carrying a shameful sin, be struggling with addiction, depression, guilt, low self esteem, or so much stress and tribulations that you doubt the very existence of God, but still, He has redeemed you. You had nothing to do with that. Your redemption is God's personal, free gift to you.

This is why He has called you by name and told you that you already belong to Him. By calling you by name, He is looking directly at you and all of your faults and all of your doubts and still telling you not to be afraid. There is nothing you hold in your heart that the Lord doesn't already know. By calling you by name, He is calling the essence of you, not your sins and struggles. Your life is a work in progress to the Lord and where you are now does not define you as the way God sees you. He sees so much more in you, after all, He made you in His image. Whatever you're going through right now, listen to the voice of God in your heart - do not be afraid, He has redeemed you. He has called YOU by name and you are His…and nobody can't take you away from Him.

Today's Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank You so much for looking past my sins and my faults and still calling me by name. Thank You for Your mercy and always being patient when I am so weak and even doubt You. Strengthen me, my Lord, so that I get rid of the fear I have in me and enjoy Your salvation. In Your Name we pray, amen.

Making It Through

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. When you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned; neither will the flames consume you. For I am your savior, I, Yahweh, your God, the Holy One of Israel. Since you are precious in my sight and important - for I have loved you, I give men in exchange for you and people in return for your life." - Isaiah 43:1-4

We hear the words "God loves you" or "Jesus loves you" so often we don't know what it really means. If our world shatters around us or we see and hear of so many injustices, reason tells us that God can't possible love us. But if you think about it, the only way for us to really know God in our lives is if we are able to make it through the trials and sorrows that hurt us and see that He was there all along. Loving someone does not mean preventing them from experiencing things, but instead to take their hand and walk them through to where they need to be. Learn to trust in God through the hardships that come to us - you have been redeemed by Him, you specifically He has called by name. Notice that the verse says that when you pass through water, when you pass through rivers, when you walk through fire - in life we WILL go through hardships but what makes it all worthwhile is that when we make it through to the other side, it is His embrace that will wait for us. These experiences we go through help us grow and be spiritually on the other side, where we need to be. And when He walks with us through these problems, we will see that we made it through without being hurt, the flames never consumed us because He promised His protection. We are precious in His sight, we are important and all things He allows so that eventually we get to know Him and see the wonders of His hand since otherwise, we might not have paid attention. The day will come when you will give thanks and glory to God because you'll see how you've made it through and how He protected you and let you know His Name.

Today's Prayer:
Lord God, the waters do feel so high at times and the heat is so close to burning me, but I know You love me and have set me apart for You. Help me, my God, to fully trust You and get through to where You are. In Your Name we pray, Amen.