It always seems to catch me off guard when someone thinks that I am someone else, – sometimes literally calling me out by someone else’s name. In order to distinguish individuals from one another you have to be looking at them, studying them, recognizing what stands out in there demeanor and behavior. Now we all mistake people for someone else and when we do it should stir something up within us that draws us to want to know more. If I have been mistaken for someone else and there is no follow-up to get to know me, what does that say about why you bothered to approach me in the first place? What a blessing it is to be known by God. The very fact that God knows us and calls us by name means that nothing we do goes unnoticed by God. It means that in both small and large ways we count – we matter to God. I believe it also means we have a responsibility to try to know one another. Recently I realized that my desire to be called by my name was synonymous with my desire to be known. However, I also realized that being mistaken for someone else is perhaps an opportunity to give people a reason to “come and see“. We must invite them into our story, our journey in Christ and make known God’s purpose in our lives. In between those opportunities we can take courage in knowing that God knows us even while we are simply sitting under the fig tree (John 1:43-51).

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