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On Faith
The Rev. Murray Hohns
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Names carry us from past to promise
My friend Jo has a great-granddaughter named Promise. When Jo's granddaughter was eight months pregnant with this child, a huge tree fell on her car and pinned her against the steering wheel. That was a scary time waiting for the firemen to remove the tree and then cut off the car's roof so they could extricate this young woman.
While she was trapped there, Jo's granddaughter brought her concerns for that unborn baby to God. She did not get angry with God or question why her car was destroyed. She prayed fervently, and God promised her that her baby would be born perfect, totally unaffected by the calamity. I have seen the pictures of the tree and the car; this was no small deal.
Now, you already know what happened since I told you the child's name. She is a beautiful young girl. Some of us name our children with purpose. Scripture tells stories about some who were named with a purpose in mind. Rachel was the beloved wife of Jacob. He loved this woman more than anyone else on the earth. Yet she was barren for many years and finally produced her firstborn, a fine young man who as a teenager suddenly disappeared without warning.
Late in life, while on the move to another country, Rachel got pregnant again. The pregnancy was not easy, and ended one day on the road to Ephrath when she died while giving birth to her second son. Rachel wanted to name the boy Ben Oni, which meant "son of my trouble," but her husband named him Benjamin, which meant "son of my right hand." Those are names that say and mean much.
I can think of some others whose parents selected their names for special reasons. I remember a real rugged fellow whose name was Precious because he was just that to his mother. Another mom named her son Prince Madrid because she had dreamed as a young girl that one day her prince would come. I once knew a fellow named Peaceful, and I knew a preacher in Philadelphia who was named Good Angel.
How about our Savior's names? Scripture tells us that he is the son of God, son of man, Lord and Christ. He is the word and He is wisdom, the light of the world. He is wonderful, my Jesus, the beginning and the end. His names are lovely!
We are known by our names. When someone thinks of you, she thinks of your name, and that brings all kinds of images into her mind. Scripture tells us that there is value in a good name. Our names get tagged with our reputations. When someone thinks of your name, does she think good things about you?
Scripture tells us that God knows our names and far more; he even knows the number of hairs on our heads. We don't even know that much about ourselves. The Psalmist wrote that we are fearfully and wonderfully made, that God knit us together in our mother's womb. He wrote that God knew where and when we would live and that he has a plan and a purpose for each of us. It's up to us to agree to live up to his plan and purpose, to become what God wants us to become. When we do that, we will be delighted and delightful, and our names will have meanings that will be exquisite just like the Savior.
The Rev. Murray Hohns is a pastor with New Hope Christian Fellowship.