What's in a name?

Everyone and everything has a name and thus a meaning is given to that person, place or thing. When creating my blog I had to think of a name and I had not thought about that part of creating the blog. I wanted it part of me, my goals and my outlook on life. I had heard this quote many times before but it became alive again at the Deeper Still conference! Kay Arthur was the first speaker and she wowed me by throwing Bible verses out every other breath. I want to be like that, able to inhale the Word and in a moment's notice exhale it! She preached on the book of Hebrews but then pulled this verse out of Philippians 3:20. Paul states , "But our citizenship is in heaven." I eagerly await Jesus return. I must remember there is somewhere better than this world everyday so my blog will remind me of this rock I stand.



Society tends to give people names by the way they look. My mom in her later years was funny but quite embarrassing. She would loudly say, "look at that poor fat so and so." I would cringe and hope they didn't hear. I think she meant it as a way to help me with my weight problem. My label has always been the red headed lady did or said that. The older I get I forget names and use descriptions for people. In my toddler Sunday School class I always try to tell Mike about someone by saying so and so child. He knows who I'm talking about without hesitation.



In Biblical times a name was much more important than it is now. It told about that persons identity, character or life. Moses meant "to draw out (of water)," Father Abraham meant "father of a multitude," Hannah means "grace." I think Mike's decision was correct to call my youngest, Olivia Grace, by her middle name- Gracie. Having a child eight years apart from our first born, Emily, was an act of grace from God. I was thirty eight and it had taken much longer to conceive our second child.



In my morning Bible study I read about Moses. When he saw the burning bush and God was speaking from it, Moses asked Him to reveal his name. Moses knew if he could identify his name he would know a lot more about who was speaking to him in such an unfamiliar fashion. The Bible has over one hundred names for God and each reveals and important aspect of His nature or points to one of the ways he reveals Himself. Studying all the different names of God will help me to know God better and his character.



Moses was a Hebrew but was raised in the court of Pharaoh. He had been exposed to many names of Egyptian Gods such as Ra, Anubis, Hathor and Awun. Moses committed a crime and fled to Midian to escape punishment. There he married the daughter of a Midian Priest. Probably her father served the war god Baal or the fertility goddess Asherah, both were gods in Canaan. Both places Moses lived he knew names of many gods, but he didn't know the name of the God his ancestors worshipped. So when the burning bush spoke to him Moses asked Him to reveal his name- he identified himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Do I recognize God when He speaks to me? Am I too busy to sit at the throne and listen for His voice or do I have everything planned from morning to night? I'm the first to admit I over schedule myself too much and don't do my quiet time like I should. I hope this blog will open my eyes to see more of God and His works in my life and others