What really counts most? It’s not about the numbers, but the names
By Dean Collins
We are an increasingly data-driven world. We count everything: units of production, sales, enrollment, church attendance, votes, measurements of fuel, temperature, white blood cells, and even the number of grandchildren. Numbers seem to matter whether evaluating your health or the balance in your retirement account.
In Scripture there are lots of numbers. There is even a book by that name. In the Old Testament we have records of citizens in the 12 tribes, the number of warriors in numerous armies, the number of animals on the ark, the number of years kings reigned, and how long God’s chosen lived in exile. In the book of Acts, we read of numbers of baptisms in various moments following the apostles’ preaching.
But what about the names? According to the biographical Bible, there are 3,237 named characters in the Bible. (Some of them have the same name so it is a bit of work to sort that all out.) According to the Population Reference Bureau, approximately 117 billion people have lived on the earth. Quite a number, but we don’t have a list of the 117 people’s names.
Praying by name
In Philippians 1 the apostle Paul told the Philippians he thanks God every time he thinks of them, yet he names only three of them in his letter. My guess is that he knew more of their names and prayed for many of them by name. In Romans 16 Paul mentioned 29 people as he gave greetings and offered prayers for his friends there.
Over the years I am confident you, like me, have prayed for many people by name. Some of us are better than others at keeping lists of people to pray for. In the last few years, I have become more disciplined at keeping a prayer list. I have names of people who are sick and many who have said goodbye to spouses, children, parents, and other family members. Some of the names on my list have relationship challenges with family members or friends. Some are going through difficult financial situations. Some are leaders of churches, businesses, or nonprofit organizations. Some are people who have caused me and people I work with great harm.
Paul told his friends that he was grateful for them and that he was confident the work God started in each of their lives would be brought to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. This is very good news! We tend to think that our work is complete when our job or project ends or maybe when our life is over. But Paul was confident that the kingdom work we do actually lasts longer. What God is doing in our lives while we are here continues all the way until Jesus returns. I suspect a lot of that work isn’t really known by those who benefit from it. But God knows. And it matters.
And I think if we put two and two together it might matter that we pray for people by name. I will confess that sometimes when I pray through my prayer list, all I know to do is to bring the person’s name to God. I don’t always know what the person needs most in that moment, but God does. And with Paul, I strongly believe whatever God is doing in a person’s life will continue on until Jesus returns.
Praying for enemies
It dawned on me today that I have people on my list who are opposed to kingdom work and sometimes to me or to people I care about. What they are doing is not right. But when I pray for them I have a sense of gratitude because the difficulty they are causing actually serves to make me grow closer to God and to depend on him more.
So today, pray for some people by name. Include your enemies. You never know when God might change their hearts. But one thing I am sure of; he will change our hearts every time we pray for anyone.
Father, thank you for knowing our names. Thank you for Jesus, the name above all names. Thank you for your steadfast love that is new every morning. Increase our confidence in prayer and in the fact that you will use our work for your purposes all the way until Jesus returns. Come, Lord Jesus. Amen
Your time with God’s Word
Philippians 1:3-11 ESV
Photo by Mick Haupt on Unsplash
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