And Hezekiah prayed to the LORD: “LORD, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. – 2 Kings 19:15

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 8, 2017): 2 Kings 19

My name is spelled a little differently. Most people spell it with only one R – I have 2. I just consider the extra R a gift from my loving parents who have always thought I was special (yeah, I know I have them fooled). What is amazing is that when people realize that I am Garry, not Gary, they seem to want to change the way my name is pronounced, often by altering the way that the ‘a’ sounds. My response is often, “sounds like Barry – which by the way also has two R’s.” In correspondence, it seems that I rarely receive something that has my name spelled correctly. It is amusing sometimes – it is even spelled wrong in response to letters and e-mails that I have sent out – with my name spelled correctly. But I don’t mind. I know it is still me to whom they are talking.

Some years ago I was at my in-laws when a phone call came in. My Father-in-law's name is Lawrence (Larry) Hunt – mine Garry Mullen. The phone call was for a Garry (or Gary, both sound the same over the phone) Hunt. Dad answered the phone and passed it on to me (Garry). I had talked for a couple of minutes before I realized it was for Dad (Hunt). We gave the phone back and forth several times before we realized it was a wrong number. The person on the phone was probably extremely frustrated as we played pass the phone, but we genuinely thought that the call was for one of us.

Worship always starts with knowing who it is that we are addressing. Hezekiah is specific. His prayer is for the God of Israel, maker of heaven and earth. In a world filled with possible deities, his prayer is to the only one who can help. And he knew who that was. In ancient times prayers often started with long descriptions of the one that was being sought – the one being worshiped. It was like dialing the right phone number – you needed to make sure that you got in contact with the object of your worship. Jesus changed that description. His response to his disciples was that when we pray, know that you have him on speed-dial. According to Jesus, when you pray – pray to our heavenly Dad. He knows, and he will answer.

The week is half over, and I just need you to know that Dad is with you. He is as much your strength on Wednesday as he was as you worshiped on the weekend. And I am glad. I wouldn’t want it any other way.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Nahum 1