Everlasting Love - by Joel Hempel I will never know the bond a mother has with her baby growing inside of her. I can only imagine how precious it is. However, with our sons, I remember loving them, talking with them, and with Marcia naming them while they were still in utero. While driving, I've been listening to Larry Carter sing God Knew Your Name.* I can't get the melody out of my head:
Before the light of day shined on your little face, God knew your name. When no one else could see how precious you would be, God knew your name. Out of the 8.3 billion people on earth, what if God, the Creator of the universe, knew your name? I'm talking about the ALMIGHTY, ALL-KNOWING, OMNIPRESENT GOD. What if He not only knew your name, but knew you – and liked you? Well, He does! He knows you for the redeemed child of God that you are. Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Jeremiah 1:5 I have loved you with an everlasting love. Jeremiah 31:3 I once jokingly stated, "You name a part of the body, and I have a doctor for it." At present, it takes eight doctors or nurse practitioners to know my body, plus additional specialists as needed. As bright as each of them is – including our own Dr. Frimel – they are all limited by the research and knowledge available to them. On the other hand, our God is intimately familiar with every cell in our bodies.
You created my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother’s womb. Psalm 139:13 You have searched me, LORD, and you know me . . . You perceive my thoughts from afar . . . Before a word is on my tongue, you LORD, know it completely. Psalm 139:1-4 My brother has a theory that whenever we look at a deceased loved one’s picture or talk with them, he thinks our loved ones in heaven know we are looking at them and thinking about them. It’s a lovely sentiment, but there is no evidence that he is right. On the other hand, when it comes to God or Christ Jesus knowing we are talking to him or looking at a symbol of his presence – like a cross – God absolutely knows we are intentionally connecting with him. God knows you. God hears you. He sees you. He loves you. *Larry Carter, God Knew Your Name, CD, 2000. |
