“‘Woman,’ he said, ‘why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?’ Thinking he was the gardener, she said, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’ She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, ‘Rabboni!’ (which means Teacher). (John 20:15-16)

I was 24 years old when I believed in Jesus as my Lord and Savior. When I share my testimony with people, I always mention that there was a church service I went to in which with absolute 100% certainty, I knew that God was speaking directly to me. It was the moment I recognized that He knew my name.

Our names carry significance. This was especially so in biblical times, so much that there were times when re-naming occurred to signify change.

Our last names are a tie to our roots, heritage, and family, while our first names are often assigned by our parents to correlate to our personality or the identity that our parents would like us to achieve or fulfill. Sometimes our first names are simply names that our parents like, but regardless, even those names become the means by which people identify and call us, and likewise, our names are what we respond to.

In the story of Mary Magdalene and Jesus in John 20, Mary is interacting with Jesus, thinking He is the gardener. She is so overwhelmed by the shock, sadness, and confusion of Jesus’ body missing from the tomb, that she only recognizes the risen Christ when He calls her name.

I believe there was an intimate recognition in Mary’s heart, mind, and spirit in that moment, as the Voice of Truth cut through the circumstance and spoke to Mary in a way that only God can.

In parallel to my life, I now know that God was always there. He was right next to me my entire life, but I failed to recognize His presence. There were likely times when He directly interacted with me, but my heart was closed off and my spirit failed to discern it was God.

That Sunday when I went to church for the first time in years, He spoke directly to me. He knew everything I was going through, every pain I carried, every tear I cried, and every fault I had. He knew my past, present, and future, and He knew that He wasn’t going to leave me where I was. He knew my life better than I knew my own.

He knew my name, and since He called it that day, my life has never been the same.

God is standing before you. He is omnipresent, and knows you by the very count of the hairs on your head (Luke 12:7). Psalm 139:14 reminds us that we were “fearfully and wonderfully made” by God, for the wonderful purpose He calls us to.

If you haven’t already, I urge you to open your heart to Him today. Realize that even the very fact that you are reading this blog right now, is because He knows your name, and is calling you into a relationship with Jesus.

I’ll leave you with a video of my boy Jeremy Manongdo, aka “Passion”, singing a beautiful song written by Tommy Walker. I pray you’re blessed by it and that God speaks His love to the very core of your heart, as that day in the garden when Jesus called Mary’s name.

 

“He Knows My Name”

I have a maker
He formed my heart,
Before even time began
My life was in his hands

He knows my name
He knows my every thought,
He sees each tear that falls
And hears me when I call

I have a father,
He calls me his own
He’ll never leave me,
No matter where I go

He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And hears me when I call

He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And hears me when I call

He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And hears me when I call
He hears me when I call

Note: If you are ready to receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior today, hit me up with a message and I’ll help you through it!

[From January 20, 2019]