Tuned In

“Awaken what’s inside of me / tune my heart to all You are in me / and even though You’re here, God come,” sings Christian music duo Shane & Shane.

When I listened to that song recently, the last line struck me: “Even though You’re here, God come.” You see, most Christians know that the Lord promised to never leave us nor forsake us, but what does that really mean?

This question is nothing new. For centuries, Christians have been wrestling with this dilemma: If the Lord is truly with us at all times, why do we feel so alone sometimes? In fact, after Jesus speaks with boldness to His adversaries, John 7:31 says: “Many of the people believed in Him, and said, ‘When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?’”

My heart sinks each time I read that. Did you catch that? When the Christ comes… He was standing in their midst, and they completely missed Him. How many times do we peruse over His communication with us each day?

A friend recently told me that God is always with us; we need to always be with Him. After that midnight conversation, in our living quarters in Mexico, I finally realized—communion with God is a two-way street.

In Luke 12:35-36, Jesus tells a parable of a wedding feast. He commands us to, “Be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately.” Let me explain…

Wait

These men were constantly looking out for an opportunity to hear from their master. Their family time, work schedules, and down-time were all tuned to listening to his voice.

Everything they did was for the glory of God. Similarly, 1 Corinthians 10:31 declares, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

I think this is what the Bible means when it says to “pray without ceasing.” Not necessarily audibly speaking with Jesus, but constantly being tuned in. This takes time and devotion. I’ve found one of the best ways to do this is to listen to worship music, but that’s just me.

Open

The men opened the door immediately. If we’re having trouble with this concept, think about what you would do with a natural friendship: sit down, talk them about their schedules, why you haven’t been talking lately, and ask the other individual to hang out some time. That’s the beauty of it. Ask, and you shall receive!

If the Light of the World is standing before us (and He is!), we won’t see Him unless we have our eyes open. Sometimes, this calls for a simple consciousness of Him; other instances, it requires sacrifice; other times, He only calls us to come to wedding. Either way, may we always be tuned into His thoughts … (to be honest, it’s pretty awesome!)

Él Sabe Su Nombre (He Knows Your Name)

I’m told that the Hebrew word for name as used in the Scriptures means more than a title; it is the very essence of a person. It signifies their thoughts, actions, desires, fears, goals, hopes, dreams, how they were formed in their mother’s womb, what sort of ice cream the like, their favorite movie, their occupation, their hobbies, and the number of hairs on their head.

When I was interning in Monterrey, Mexico…

I had the amazing opportunity to play with the kids from Casa Hogar Douglas. At least three times a week, we worked at the children’s home and horsed around with the niños! As our time there grew, so did our relationships with the kids.

As soon as we could exit our white Toyota pick-up truck, the kids would run towards us, screaming our names: “Jose! Jose! Jose!”

I cannot describe how special that made me feel each time we arrived. Because I could not speak Spanish, my medium of communication was body language. In these situations, though, we all spoke the same language. Their smiling faces running towards me spoke volumes, because while we came to pour our hearts into our concrete job, they came to let us know that we were appreciated (and that they wanted us to play with them)! I can remember thinking, Wow. They remembered my name.

Then, this thought hit me like a speeding train: if I, a random teenager from north-east Ohio, feel so special that a Mexican kid remembered my name, I wonder what Marcos, Magali, Gustavo, Rosario, and Jorge feel like when I remember their nombre?

In the same way…

The Lord knows our names. He knows your thoughts, actions, desires … In Isaiah 43:1, the Lord declares, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are Mine.”

Just as Marcos would run towards me, calling my name (and stroking his hair into a fohawk so that he could look like me), the Lord runs towards you.

Spend time with Him and get to know His name. There is no greater joy.