Thursday, January 9, 2020

GOD KNOWS OUR NAMES

Today’s Reading: Isaiah 43-44

Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).

 

A flooded river bed, now dry, makes its way from the high country in Israel to the dry and arid region of the Dead Sea. The roots of the trees can find water which remains underground. Even in dry times we can reach down in our prayers and Bible studies to tap the life-giving underground water Source. God has promised to “pour water on him who is thirsty” (44:3a).

GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.

 

Key Verses: Isaiah 43:1, 44:3

But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob,

And He who formed you, O Israel:

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by your name;

You are Mine…”

For I will pour water on him who is thirsty,

And floods on the dry ground;

I will pour My Spirit on your descendants,

And My blessing on your offspring;

 

Our Scripture reading for today begins with the fact that our God is a personal God! No doubt Isaiah’s readers will have brought to mind stories such as that of the Prophet/Priest Samuel. God called “Samuel” by name. Read 1 Samuel 3:1-10 and realize that God knows each one of us by our names. God called a man who was persecuting His people. In Acts we read of the man who became the Apostle Paul, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting Me?” (Acts 9:1-22).

Isaiah 44 describes the efforts of men to create new gods and then represent them by images made of wood and stone. In contrast, the true, One and only God, is not a creation but is the supreme Creator! Man does not imagine Him, nor do we name Him. He names Himself! And to think that Almighty God can call us by our individual names! Let us take time right now to listen for God. Is He calling us by name with that “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:12). When we hear His voice, it is truly like a refreshing drink of water for the thirsty soul.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord Jesus, You said, “My sheep know My voice”! (John 10:27). I am one of Your sheep Lord, so it follows that all I have to do is quiet my spirit and listen carefully. I hear You calling me and telling me, “I know your name and I love you!” I pray that I will love You back more and more, Lord Jesus! 1 John 4:19 declares that “We love Him because He first loved us.” Amen!!!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

I have on my laptop screen a page of icons. I can click on “Concordance” and type in a few words of a verse, and it immediately finds the reference so that I can then open my Bible and read the verse in its context. For example, this morning I did not use the Concordance app, but put the words “still small voice” into the Google search engine. It said that for those words there were 430,000,000 results in 0.16 seconds!!! All this boggles my mind. I may not know how this all works, but I do know with the certainty of God’s Word that God knows my name, and He calls me by my name! Through the years, when I needed a particular chapter and verse and my son-in-law, Rev. Nizar Shaheen, was nearby, I would give him two or three words of the Scripture I wanted to find. He would immediately tell me where it was found. I’ve never found anyone else with such a memory.

The story of Nizar’s conversion to Christ is an amazing one, and today’s first key verse is a big part of his testimony. He fell from the minaret of a mosque under construction and his brothers thought he was dead. They laid him in the back seat of a car to take him to the hospital when they saw signs of life. Lying there he heard a voice saying, “Nizar, Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine!” Click here for an interview I did with Nizar in 2003, where he tells this amazing story of our great, personal God Who knows each of our names and Who created each one of us for His purpose. I’ve just read again Isaiah 43:7-11 and committed myself again for today to be as verse 10a says,”You are My witnesses”!!!

Yours in recognition of the fact that God not only knows our names, but He knows everything about each one of us and He loves us!!!

David

P.S. Below is a picture of the life-giving waters of the Jordan River right after my grandson, Eric Mainse (Ron and Ann’s son), was baptized by Nizar and me a few years ago.

13 thoughts on “Thursday, January 9, 2020

  1. What a beautiful post, Praise You Lord, You know my name!! Thank you for continuing to daily send out these encouraging emails. God Bless Crossroads Christian Communications Inc. the Lord Bless your ministry.

    • Amen Beth, it is so amazing and wonderful that God knows each of us by name. It makes me feel so wanted and cared for and I shed happy tears.
      Blessings to all dear blogger friends and also the Mainse family . You all feel like family to me. Eleanor M

  2. Thank You, Lord God, for loving and caring for us! May your Kingdom come and your will be done throughout this world as it is in heaven. In Jesus’s most precious name, amen

  3. Yes, Praise our heavenly Father for knowing our names. If we only knew at the time of children’s birth that naming them was so special. God bless all dear saints this cold day in west central Alberta. Praying for world peace and coming to Jesus.

    ” A church worker in Iran told CBN News that, forty years after Iran’s Islamic revolution, there’s another spiritual revolution underway in his country.
    He states, “More people have come to faith [in Christ] in Iran in the last forty years than in the previous 1,400 years.” Believers there say that persecution in Iran is not hindering the church. In fact, it is growing it.
    One missional leader explains: “When the persecution stops, the growth stops. What we want is the Gospel to spread far and wide and deep in Iran.”
    As we work, God works. As we face conflict in our nation and in our souls, the key is to do what only we can do and trust God to do what only he can do.” Dr. Jim Denison. Shalom.

  4. Praise God for today’s scripture, message, prayer, photos and Nizar’s testimony. Thank You Lord for saving, calling, and working through him. Indeed, we are Your sheep, Lord and we hear and know Your voice! We quiet our spirits and listen to You. We hear You calling our names. We love You Lord. Our Saviour. Our Redeemer. Our Prince of Peace and King of Kings. To You, do we humbly bow and give all the glory and praise! Amen to all the saints’ posts. Holding you all in prayer, dear ones!

    Every house is built by someone, but God is the one who builds all things.
    Hebrews 3:4 NET

    You are Holy (Prince of Peace) – Michael W. Smith
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsYyuK1w3q0

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