“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine." Isaiah 43:1
The story you are about to read may or may not be true; only the names have been changed to protect the innocent. Once upon a time, (aka yesterday), there was a Lutheran principal serving in Walled Lake, Michigan, who wanted to purchase a gift to welcome the arrival of a new baby boy blessed to a certain Lutheran Associate Pastor and his wife, who were coincidentally also serving in Walled Lake, Michigan. Knowing that this particular Associate Pastor was a huge baseball fan, she wanted to get this baby a personalized toddler-sized Detroit Tiger jersey with the baby’s last name on the back of the jersey. She knew that proper spelling was very important for the success of this gift. She even thought that she had double checked the spelling, because this last name is VERY long. Sadly, she must have done this task without the assistance of her reading glasses because when this Associate Pastor opened the gift, his face said it all! There is a significant difference between the letters “A” and the letter “O”. Good thing these letters can be removed and reapplied!
Knowing people’s names is very important! When we first joined St. Matthew many years ago, there was a particular gentleman that my husband greeted every week by a different name, none of which were his correct name. Finally, I became proactive and made sure that I greeted this person first, just so Ken would hear my voice to be reminded of his correct name.
What a blessing it is to know that we have a gracious and loving God who loves us so much that not only does He know our correct names, but He claims us as His children.
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are Mine." Isaiah 43:1.
When circumstances of daily life start to become overwhelming and/or discouraging, remember that you have a Heavenly Father who loves you dearly and will never let you walk through any challenge alone because you are His precious child!
Have a wonderful week knowing that you are extremely important to Him!
In Jesus’ Love,
Mrs. Palka