The One He Loves

 “So the sisters sent word to Jesus, ‘Lord, the one you love is sick.’” 

John 11:3 (NIV)

       When my oldest grandson Noah was a little guy, I always told him his name was really “best boy in the whole world.” He would call me on the phone and when I heard that sweet voice say “Hi Grandma,” I would immediately put on my gruffest sounding voice and say “Who is this?!” and he would giggle “It’s your best boy in the whole world!” and I would respond with “Oh, this must be Noah!”

    To this day, many years later, when he calls and I question who it is on the phone, he responds with the same answer - “best boy in the whole world” – because he knows my special name for him.

    In the Scripture found in John 11, Lazarus has become ill and his sisters Martha and Mary immediately send word to Jesus. Their message is not “Lazarus is sick” or “our brother is sick” but rather “the one you love” is sick. Jesus constantly had many different people around him and yet He knew exactly who “the one you love” was.

    In the same way, Jesus knows each of us personally. When I call His name, He is quick to acknowledge me as His child and to listen to my requests. Just knowing I have that kind of close personal relationship with Him makes me stand up straighter and smile bigger. Because He knows me by name, He will also be faithful in hearing and answering when I call.

    What are you going through right now? A marriage in crisis or a spouse that has passed away? A child who has turned his back on those who love him? A serious illness? Do you feel completely alone and wonder if the Lord even knows who you are?

    Let me be the first to assure you that yes, God not only knows what you are going through but He knows you personally. There is no doubt that when you call His name, He immediately says “I am here, my child, the one I love.” Call on Jesus with complete confidence in knowing He hears, He answers and He knows you by name. 

    Father, thank you with all my heart for loving me as your child, for knowing my name among millions, and for listening and answering when I call. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

R.A.P. it up . . . 

Reflect

• Have you ever felt that when you pray, God does not really hear you or even know who you are among the billions in the world?

• Why do you think you have felt that way?

 Apply

• Journal Exodus 33:17 from the power verses today. Put your name in place of “Moses” and rewrite the Scripture

• Thank the Lord for knowing you by name.

Power 

• John 11:3 (NIV) “So the sisters sent word to Jesus, ‘Lord, the one you love is sick.’”

• Isaiah 43:1 (NIV) “But now, this is what the Lord says – he who created you O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.”

• Exodus 33:17 (NIV) “And the Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.”