I Have Called You by Name
Daily Scripture
Isaiah 43:1-4
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But now, says the LORD, the one who created you, Jacob, the one who formed you, Israel: Don’t fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; when through the rivers, they won’t sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you won’t be scorched and flame won’t burn you. I am the LORD your God, the holy one of Israel, your savior. I have given Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in your place. Because you are precious in my eyes, you are honored, and I love you. I give people in your place, and nations in exchange for your life.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
These words in Isaiah were written for God’s people during one of the hardest seasons in their history. Babylon had conquered Jerusalem, destroyed the temple, and carried many of the people away into exile, hundreds of miles from home. Many of them wondered whether God had forgotten them.
God answered with a promise. Don’t fear. I have redeemed you. I have called you by name. You are mine. God told them he would be with them through deep water and through fire, and that they were precious in his eyes, honored, and loved.
In the Bible, calling someone by name meant knowing them closely, the way a friend does. One nineteenth-century commentary on this verse described calling someone by name as “the mark of an individualising tenderness.”* God was telling a scattered, discouraged people that they had not become a faceless crowd to him. He knew who they were, and they belonged to him. These words were first spoken to Israel, and Christians have long heard in them God’s love for every person he has made.
God knows each of us by name, and we’re called to see people the same way. A name is one of the simplest ways to tell someone they matter. When we learn a person’s name and use it, we pass along a small piece of what God has already said to each of us. We tell them we know who they are and that they belong.
- God spoke to a people who felt forgotten and told them he knew them by name. Who in your life might be feeling forgotten right now, and how could you let them know they are seen this week?
- God called his people by name to tell them they belonged to him. Think about the people you’ll cross paths with this week. What would it look like to learn one new name and use it the next time you see that person?
Prayer
God, you know my name and you call me yours. Thank you for seeing me when I feel forgotten or lost in the crowd. Help me see the people around me the same way. Give me the attention to learn names, the memory to hold on to them, and the kindness to use them. Let the way I speak to others remind them that they are known and loved by you. Amen.
GPS Insights
Anna Herholz
Hi! My name is Anna Herholz, I will be beginning my senior year of college at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln with a degree in Neuroscience! I grew up in Resurrection and was a student ministry intern in the Summer of 2024. Resurrection will always have such a special place in my heart for who it shaped me to become.
I love the part of this scripture where God reminds Israel, “I have called you by name; you are mine.” At this time, the people felt lost as it was a very hard and transitional period. It is powerful to think that God does not begin by giving Israel a to-do list of everything needed to do to get out of this hardship, rather, God begins by reminding Israel who they already are. They are known, loved, and they belong, and that is enough as it is.
I think one of the hardest parts of being human is figuring out who we are. We often talk about this as something that happens when we are young. We graduate from high school, go to college, start a career, get married, have children, retire, and you’re expected to just figure out who you are along the way, but oftentimes it’s easy to get caught up in the weeds of life that you lose track of the fact that just being is enough.
At every stage of life, we are becoming someone new. Sometimes we look back at who we were ten, twenty, or fifty years ago and realize we are not the same person anymore. And sometimes, that can be unsettling. I love how this passage begins because if you can imagine, life is really tough for them right now. God has started feeling pretty distant for them, but God doesn’t appear with a “to-do list” or a list that would make everything go away, instead, he brings peace. Peace in just being. Letting them know they can feel peace as a child of God. Letting them know they are known, loved, seen, and that they belong.
I think this message is important no matter what stage we are in life. I personally have fallen victim to productivity culture, where I feel as though there are not enough hours in the day to get done what I need to get done. I often find myself not able to watch a movie or Dancing With the Stars (my guilty pleasure) without having my computer out on some assignment or Quizlet. If I am taking a break, why am I not at the gym? Why am I wasting this precious study time? Why didn’t I pick up a shift? It is hard to feel peace in just being in this world, but hearing this scripture, it almost feels like an “OK” to just be.
This can also take the pressure off of us in transitional periods. For someone who is young, it can mean that you do not have to have your entire future planned out. For someone who is raising a family, it can mean that your worth isn’t measured by perfection. For someone who is beginning a new chapter, it means that you are allowed to become someone different. And for someone who is older, it can be a reminder that we never stop becoming. There is no age at which God stops calling us by name, loving us, or inviting us into something new.
And then comes one of the most beautiful lines in the passage: “Because you are precious in my eyes, you are honored, and I love you.” There are no qualifications attached to that love. Not because you have the perfect career. Not because you raised your children perfectly. Not because you crossed everything off on your to-do list for the day. God just simply says, “You are precious in my eyes.”
I think we spend a lot of our lives trying to prove that we are worthy. We measure ourselves by accomplishments, relationships, appearances, careers, families, and even our faith. We ask ourselves whether we are doing enough, whether we are successful enough, whether we have become the person we thought we would be. But perhaps Isaiah invites us to stop measuring our worth by what we have done and remember that our worth begins with being known and loved by God.
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Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
References
* Charles John Ellicott, ed., Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers, on Isaiah 43:1 (London: Cassell, 1880s).
