He Remembers My Name
I remember one summer while in college, I went to Atlanta, GA to The Underground shopping center. I was walking along and I heard someone say “Sharon!” I turned around, and I was greeted with a very familiar, beautiful smile that lit up the room and truly made my day!
There was only one problem. Although I knew in the depths of my soul that I knew this person and knew her well, I could not remember her name to save my life.
This bothered me. I often prided myself on really SEEING people…and at the very least, remembering their names. Of course, as I got older with children and had more things to take up my brain space, this became more challenging. But when I was younger, I hardly ever forgot a name or a face!
By the goofy smile I had on my face, this beautiful soul realized that I was struggling to place a name with her face. As she reminded me of who she was, I became even more ashamed, because we sat in classes together in high school, laughed together, talked on the phone, and even hung out a few times. I hugged her so tightly and apologized profusely. That beautiful smile never dropped.
I’m not sure how this made her feel, but I know how I have felt when I ran into someone from my past that was significant to me in some way, yet they did not remember who I was. I have asked myself, “how in the world did they forget my name? We spent so much time together!”
This is one of the many imperfections of humans. No matter how hard we try, we can not avoid falling short in one area or another.
Aren’t you grateful that you serve a perfect God?
No matter how long of a “hiatus” I have taken from being in His presence, He remembers my name.
In the book of John, it talks about the Good Shepherd and His sheep. John 10:3 says, “The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to His voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”
I read this passage of scripture and it reminded me of how important my name is to Him. No matter what I go through in life, not only does he call me by name, but he also leads me!
It’s so easy to feel forgotten in the “noisiness'“, heartache, and tribulation of life. Sometimes we pray and nothing seems to change. Therefore we feel forgotten.
But our Father, the Good Shepherd, has never left us nor forsaken us! He is always there leading us and guiding us, even when it doesn't seem that way.
Isaiah 49: 14-16 NLT says “Yet Jerusalem says, “The Lord has deserted us; the Lord has forgotten us.” Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would never forget you! See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands. Always in my mind is a picture of Jerusalem’s walls in ruins.”
You may feel like your walls are in ruins. But whatever your walls are, they are ALWAYS before the Lord. He sees and He knows, and He has not forgotten your name!
The walls of your marriage may be in ruins, but He has not forgotten you.
The walls of your finances may be in ruins, but He has not forgotten you.
The walls of your mental health may be in ruins, but He has not forgotten you.
The walls of your family situation may be in ruins, but He has not forgotten you.
When the time is right, He will restore you, just as He sees fit. His ways are perfect and everything is made beautiful in His time.
Be encouraged today. Remember that He would never forget you. Your name is so special to Him that He has written it on the palms of His hands.