He Knows Your Name (John 20-21)

Jesus said to her, “Mary.”  She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”). (John 20:16)

God knows you intimately; he knit you together from the start.  He knows the number of hairs on your head, and he knows the things from your past that bring you shame.  Because he breathed you into existence, it makes sense that, when he speaks your name in its gentle simplicity, the word communicates something different than when others speak it.

When Jesus met Mary near the tomb, she was distraught and heartbroken over the death of her Lord.  The missing body added to the drama as she asked the strange man if he knew where the body was taken.  Jesus only needed to call Mary by name for her to recognize that he was the one speaking to her.

God knows your name, too.  He’s waiting for you to search for him just as Mary was searching, and when you go looking, he will be pleased to speak your name in the most gentle way, and he will reassure you of his presence.  He will call you back to the place where you started.  After all, he made you.  He knows you.  And he’s waiting for you to come home to him.

Father, thank You that You know my name.  Thank You for the quiet moments when I sit at Your feet and You whisper my name to me – as a reminder that I am Your creation, and I am loved.  Let me never wander far from You and so miss out on the joy of hearing You call to me.