Called by Name

Just as the Angel called the Shepherds to give witness to Christ, so too does God call you to give witness to Him.

To be Called by One's Very Own Name
    In Isaiah 43:1, it is significant that God does not call us generically but specifically. The Lord calls us by name; indeed, by our very own name. To be thus called is to be known eternally and to be chosen to exist in time. It is to be created as a unique individual. It is to be loved intimately, personally and faithfully by God. To be called by our own name is to be espoused to the Lord. It is to be drawn into a covenant with God. It is ultimately to be invited to become one with God in participant transformation, while at the same time attaining the pinnacle of self-identity.
   God's call creates each of us into a unique person with a particular way to reach full maturity in Christ. We receive a singular identity as well as the potential to attain maximum development of our personhood. We receive the power to experience, to know and to love the Lord. Integral to the Lord's calling us by name then is the mystery of our being and becoming in God. The Lord has implanted within us a thrust toward the fullness of being: eternal life in God. Our being has a dynamic propensity toward ever greater becoming. To be is to become God by participation. To be fully human is to become divinized.

Called by God, A Theology of Vocation and Lifelong Commitment  pg 51 ~ Frances Kelly Nemeck and Marie Theresa Coombs.