Known and Loved

I'm an open book to you;
even from a distance, you know what I'm thinking.
You know when I leave and when I get back;
I'm never out of your sight.
You know everything I'm going to say
before I start the first sentence.
I look behind me and you're there,
then up ahead and you're there, too—
your reassuring presence, coming and going.
This is too much, too wonderful—
I can't take it all in! Ps 139:1-6 ( The Message)

God knows us. He knows us and He loves us. He really,really does....not just love us, that is, but know us.

This is being brought home to me much more clearly as I reach out more regularly for words of knowledge. I have started to use the gift daily. No-one told me it could be so easy! And fun! It's like delivering God's mail. But that is getting off topic...You see, as I have asked God for understanding for people I meet, the specific nature of them has started to stagger me.

Take Watermelon Girl for example. I was in a crowded market in an eating area of Philadelphia a few weeks ago. As I wandered along with my companions I half thought, half prayed, 'Lord, it would be great if you gave me a message for someone here'. He did, as He had all through my trip. A girl in line ahead of me drew my attention. I subsequently engaged her in easy conversation and was able to share the picture I carried. It was of a watermelon of all things! This watermelon however, had strange 'pips' which put her off eating it. She then told me she is allergic to watermelon. I was able to pray for her, and left her more open to the specific love of God for her. It was just a bonus that she was a Kiwi!

The more I think about it, the more mind boggling this specific love is. The God we worship, love and serve can pick a young woman who knows nothing about him out of a crowd of 100+ people in a foreign country. Then He can have someone deliver very specific word of knowledge about them. O how He knows us! O how He loves us!

This knowledge has powerful implications for me as a Jesus follower. Most Christians are familiar with scriptures such as Ps 139....when I sit down and stand up etc, but how ho hum do we become over time. We do! We may feel guilty that He knows us so well, because He sees all our faults. When we know He loves us, His specific knowledge of us is overwhelmingly reassuring. On a day when everything is difficult, or He seems distant, think....
'God knows everything about me. He knows how I feel, today, right now. He knows and He cares!'

Wow, and for those of us who don't even acknowledge God - He knows what you think, where you live, what you ate for breakfast. He knows your darkest thoughts, your loneliest hours, and He loves you. Think about it!