I love getting Christmas cards. A lot of people think they are a waste of time and money, but I really enjoy hearing from people (especially those who may live far away and not be in contact very often) and I love getting something through the letterbox which is not junk mail or bills, as well as having cards from those who live nearby. Christmas cards are a reminder that I still matter to people, that they are thinking of me at this time of year and that we are still connected, even if separated in other ways. People I used to go to school with, friends from university, former colleagues and friends from foreign countries all get in touch at this time of year, and I enjoy hearing their news. This year has brought news of moves, additions to the family (a lot of my friends are reaching the age of becoming grandparents, and it seems astonishing to me that their children, whom I remember being born, can now be old enough to have their own children!), some troubles (inevitably), but it is always good to hear of God’s faithfulness and help.
The Bible has many lists of names and it can be rather overwhelming at times to plough through these lists of genealogies or names which to us are unfamiliar and often unpronounceable! Today’s readings included Ezra 2, where the exiles returning to Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity, are listed. Wow, what a list! Pippa Gumbel, on this reading, commented, ‘The people were counted, because people count.’ For this reason, I always really like the lists of names in the Bible. They remind me, as do the Christmas cards sent each year and displayed in my house, that people count. Individuals matter. God knows each one of us by name.
Naming, Eugene Peterson says, ‘is a way of hoping.’ (‘Run With The Horses’, P 29) He goes on to remind us that ‘no child is just a child. Each is a creature in whom God intends to do something glorious and great. Who we are and will be is compounded with who God is and what He does.’ (ibid., P 32) At this time of year, our attention is focussed on one child, Jesus, whose name carries hope (‘He shall save His people from their sins’) and who is a visible reminder that God is always with us (‘Emmanuel’; listen to Matt Redman’s ‘His Name Shall Be’). But it’s worth remembering that each one of us also matter to God and that He knows each one of us by name.
