I’ve taken a small hiatus from the writing scene
lately. At times I feel overwhelmed by
how many things need to be written about and I retreat to the pages of my own
personal journal as I get all of my thoughts together. A concept has become a reoccurring theme in
my recent musings, the idea of a name.
What is the power of a name?
Why does it matter what we’re named, what people call us, or what we
allow our title to be? What does naming
something do?
It’s strange how much power a name has. For instance the difference between your
husband/boyfriend calling you “Babe” or calling you “Baby.” This one might just be me personally, but “Babe”
sounds more like a name of possession, “You’re my girl!” and “Baby” has the
feeling of sweetness, intimacy, and care.
“You’re my love.” One letter
difference, a name change, and completely different feelings emerge.
When you’ve been hurt by someone the sound of their name
lights a fire of anger, resentment, and hurt deep within you, as you quickly
try to change the subject.
The names you were called by teasing classmates in the dark
corners of the gym locker room haunt you into adulthood.
Why does a name mean so much?
When I was younger my family called me sweet names like
Possum, due to the fact that I always faked like I was asleep when dad came to
wake me up in the morning, and Jessie Poo (obviously that one came from
mom). In college, my close friends
called me Peanut after a high energy ventriloquist puppet from a popular comedy
routine. I loved those names, they were
sweet, and they incited a smile every time I heard them.
I’ve been called many other things in my life too; addict,
broken, messy, rebel, trouble, problem child, hard, tough, misunderstood,
stubborn, too honest, evil, heathen, a false prophet (that was a new one), and
even a bitch a few times. It’s interesting
how quickly those names jump back into my mind, much more so than the former
sweet names.
The power of a name isn’t in the word itself; it’s not the
letters in a row or even the definition of the word itself that makes it mean
so much. The power in the name is how it
defines you.
That’s why God puts verses in the Bible like the one in
Isaiah that says, “You will be called by a new
name that the Lord himself will give you. You will be a majestic crown in
the hand of the Lord.”
There are many pictures of people being given new names
after life changing encounters with God.
Abram and Sari became Abraham and Sarah, Saul the destroyer became Paul
the humble, and Simon became Peter, the rock of Christ’s church.
God hasn’t changed.
We are given a new name for every awful one we have ever been called
after our radical encounter with Christ.
Where we were once called “Broken” he names us “Whole.” Where we hear “Ugly” he shouts “Beautiful.” When we are a mess he calls us perfect. We have BEEN renamed.
It’s not just in the process of happening as we work a
little harder to be a better person. Our
name has already BEEN, past tense, changed.
It is done, written on the heart of Christ, tattooed on our spirits for
the rest of eternity!
So, you might ask, “What does that mean for me?” It means you are no longer defined by your
past. It means you no longer have to
answer to that voice inside your head that calls you no enough. It means you can live in freedom knowing that
you are named by the one who sees you as perfect. In the words of Madea, “It’s not what you’re
called; it’s what you answer to.”
What will you answer to?
*Revelation 2:17
*Isaiah 62:2-3
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