Maybe church was the last place where everybody knew your name, and leaving turned you back into a stranger. Isaiah wrote this for people carried far from home, and it doesn't speak to a crowd; it singles you out. You belong to God by name, not by membership, and he walks into the deep water with you.
But now, this is what the Lord says—he who created you: "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you." Isaiah 43:1-3a (NIV)
The prayer
God, in my loneliness, I hear You calling my name. You created me. You redeemed me. I am Yours. You are with me through every flood and fire.
Make it yours: change any words that don’t fit, or stop at the one line that’s true today.
Amen can wait until you mean it.
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