One interesting phenomenon I have come to observe, both as a Christian and as a Church leader, is the level at which we are always seeking for something. Yes, people are always in search of something. Either we are searching for healing, or we are searching for wealth, or we are searching for fame. Some folks are in search of a partner or in search of a job. We are all always looking for something. This has made many folks so desperate that they look in the wrong places. We forget we do not have to search too far because we have a maker who already knows everything about us. Many of us also do not know the God we worship enough to realize that He knows us inside and out.
Why am I still searching when God Himself has already searched me thoroughly? Psalm 139:1-2 says “You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.” So, God knows every one of my troubles. When I go out, He knows. When I come in, He knows. When I am in pain, He knows. When I am in joy, He knows. When I am in want, He knows and when I am in abundance, He knows. I do not need to look for anyone or go through anyone for God to understand my problems because He already knows. God knows the real me. He is an all-knowing God. When I am not even sure who I am, God knows. He knows and He can use His revelation power to reveal a lot more to me than I can ever know about myself. So, whatever I am searching for God already knows.
Whatever the burdens we are carrying on our shoulders, God wants to relieve us of these burdens. We must however have a relationship with Him first. We need to know His name just as He knows our names. When I was in High School, we had this Guidance Counselor who seems to know everyone’s names. He knew us so well that his counsel on which subject or profession we should engage in were usually right on the money. I met this man again a few years ago, when many old students gathered to honor him, and I was surprised to find out that he still knew my name. As many as we were in the hall, each of us not only had words of appreciations for this man who guided us on our professional paths, but we also had various stories of our encounters with him while we were in school. Back at school, none of us ever wanted to believe that the man truly knew our names until he has a personal encounter with you. For every student I know who has had this encounter, the feeling was always “oh my God, he knows my name”. This was so because it confirmed to us then, that the man truly had a relationship with each student. We all returned the favor, he was a beloved teacher among many.
If a man could have that kind of impact on his students, how much more our God? The all-knowing, all-powerful, ever-present God! It should be the same for us children of God. Our God knows our names, a sign of His close relationship with every one of us. God loves us and we also need to return the favor by seeking a close relationship with Him. The word of God in Jeremiah 1:5a says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you”. He knows us because we are important to Him.
God knows your name, He knows my name; and as that popular worship song says, “He knows my every thought, He sees each tear that falls, and He hears me when I call.” You see, this our God that is omnipotent and omnipresent is not too powerful to relate with His own; He is not too powerful to know my name. I believe it is the song for that Sitcom “Cheers” that said, “Sometimes you want to go, where everybody knows your name”. That is okay, but I am perfectly satisfied being under God’s canopy of love anywhere, knowing fully well that He, above anyone else, knows my name. – Pastor Simbo Odunaiya
