LISTEN ONLINEThe celebrity offered his hand in greeting as he sat down next to me at our table. “And you are?” My reply didn’t measure highly on his importance scale, while that of the honoured lady to his right certainly did. Our conversation ended before the soup was served. I was unknown, unimportant and wearing a non-designer dress.
Later, feeling slightly dejected, the words of a Bible verse sprang to mind: “I am pleased with you and I know you by name” (Exodus 33:17). God knows us by name. What a thrill! And His is the only affirmation we need.
Moses needed affirmation on the day that God commanded his people to leave for the promised land, announcing that He would no longer accompany them because of their idolatry (Exodus 33:1–2). Israel’s leader pleaded that God would not abandon them: “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here” (v. 15), while also needing to be assured of God’s hand on his own life and leadership (v. 13).
God’s response was both personal and remarkable: “I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name” (v. 17).
It is easy to feel invisible, insignificant, unimportant. Especially if we measure our worth by society’s flawed standards. Yet, whatever our circumstances, God knows us by name. Nothing can be more empowering than that!