I hear my name

[marcushill07@gmail.com]

For the past 5 years I have traveled to Redding, CA to spend Christmas with some friends. The Sunday after New Years we typically attend the local Lutheran church although none of my friends belong to the denomination. I was always impressed that a hand full of members remembered who I was each year. This reminds me of how much my Great Shepherd knows my name and everything about me.

Youth pastors will never be able to minister to students until they know and remember their names. Knowing the name of someone you want to disciple starts with building a relationship -you must first know who they are. The story of Moda who returned home to found he was missing 7 out of 300 illustrates this point. Since Moda had seven sheep missing, as the Shepherd, he could call them by name. He can recuse the sheep. He will search for the sheep’s. He will look after and care for the sheep’s. It’s the same way God cares for us. God will tend to his sheep in the good pasture. God will lie down good grazing land and bring back the strays. God will strengthen the weak sheep and empower the strong ones. He does this for all his sheep that are known to him and declare him as Shepherd.