Having a Name

My son's first word was "uh-oh" followed closely by "dada" and "diggy" (his pet name for our dog). I was so proud of him saying new words and learning. I became more and more disappointed, though, with each passing day when he didn't say my name. I wanted to hear him say may name and claim me as his mom.

Well, he finally did say my name. My heart melted and my face could hardly contain my elated grin. He knew who I was! He had called me by name! I know this is something every child does, but my child knew who I was enough to figure out my name. That says something.

It also says something about the way God feels about us. Just like I waited for my son to know my name, God waits for each one of us to call him by name and declare him as our Heavenly Father. Can you imagine how excited he must get? I could barely wait 12 months to hear Blaine say my name, but God sometimes waits decades, even centuries for us to call him Father. How excited he must be that we love him enough to find him and learn his name. Psalm 89:26 says, "He shall cry unto me, Thou art my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation."

God wants to have a relationship with us and he will always wait for us, never giving up. But what happens if we don't find him in time? He can only wait as long as we are alive. After that, there is nothing he can do. Don't wait too long. He has so much to offer us, including the free gift of eternal life. God wants to be a father to us, he is the father of the fatherless. When we have no one to turn to, we can always turn to him.

God, thank you for giving us love, mercy and hope. Thank you for never giving up on us, even when we are so stubborn. You are truly holy and mighty. God, we want to know you as our salvation. We want to call on you in our times of need and our time of joy. Show us your way, God, so we can learn to follow you. Help us overcome our stubbornness and heal our broken hearts so we can give them to you. Amen.