28 God doesn’t count us; he calls us by name. Arithmetic is not his focus. 29 Isaiah had looked ahead and spoken the truth: If our powerful God had not provided us a legacy of living children, We would have ended up like ghost towns, like Sodom and Gomorrah. 30 How can we sum this up? All those people who didn’t seem interested in what God was doing actually embraced what God was doing as he straightened out their lives. 31 And Israel, who seemed so interested in reading and talking about what God was doing, missed it. 32 How could they miss it? Because instead of trusting God, they took over. They were absorbed in what they themselves were doing. They were so absorbed in their “God projects” that they didn’t notice God right in front of them, like a huge rock in the middle of the road. And so they stumbled into him and went sprawling. 33 Isaiah (again!) gives us the metaphor for pulling this together: Careful! I’ve put a huge stone on the road to Mount Zion, a stone you can’t get around. But the stone is me! If you’re looking for me, you’ll find me on the way, not in the way.
Romans 9:28-33
Isaiah 43:1-2
But now, thus says the LORD, who created you, O Jacob, And he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are mine.*
10 1-5 “Let me set this before you as plainly as I can. If a person climbs over or through the fence of a sheep pen instead of going through the gate, you know he’s up to no good—a sheep rustler! The shepherd walks right up to the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he gets them all out, he leads them and they follow because they are familiar with his voice. They won’t follow a stranger’s voice but will scatter because they aren’t used to the sound of it.”
John 10
He calls us by name. He knows us intimately. See a pattern here?
Sisters, Adah and Rhema.
It seems like in this constant state of ” GO!” in my life, I live for the slow Saturday mornings. All the babies in our beds, kicking us in the face trying to get settled in with us. Fighting over who gets to lay beside Mom, and who gets to rub Dad’s back. ( yes, this is a fight . )
This particular Saturday all three kids decided to have play time, rather than snuggle with us. It was the first time in a while that we were alone on a Saturday morning. As this could prove dangerous re-productively , I got up , dressed myself and made a whole pot of coffee, with no one to share it with.
I hear my husband, Matt yelling for our daughter Rhema to come snuggle with him. She is usually in bed with us anyway, and has a special snuggling bond with her Daddy.
For the reason of being engulfed in playing with her doll house, she refused the snuggle session.
” DAD! I’m sending Adah, I’m busy!”
” But Rhem, I called you !”
I watched her shrug her shoulders, and tell her little sister to go see Daddy.
” I’m busy Adah , go snuggle Dad. “
There was something profound that captured my spirits attention when my husband said that he called her. He didn’t call any other child, although he would love any one of our children to come snuggle, in this specific case, he called Rhema.
Why?
He missed her. The day before he hadn’t gotten to see her much, and missed his little girl. His first little girl. Boy was he wrapped around her tiny finger from day one. Their eyes locked and his world changed forever. In our girls presence he is a total softy and push over. I didn’t say that.
Hearing and seeing this conversation take place , I saw how our heavenly Father must feel when we reject time with Him. The bible clearly states that he calls us by name, and knows us by our names. We are not just one of his children, we are HIS child. The one He met for the first time and fell inlove with. His whole heart expanded the day you were born. He made a special place in His heart to love you, and call you by your name.
So next time He calls you into his presence, don’t send another. Go to Him. He missed you.
Daddy meeting Rhema for the first time.
