Because It Is My Name!

Because It Is My Name!

One of my favorite plays to teach was The Crucible By Arthur Miller. I’m a sucker for a good redemption arc. Spoiler alert! One of the main characters screams “Because it is my name and I can not have another!” after reversing course and refusing to sign a document admitting to a crime he did not commit. It’s compelling, powerful, and tragic. You want him to stand for something, but until this point, he seems only willing to save his skin. After this outburst, the audience can see his internal struggle and final triumph.

Names Are Important

Names are important. Historically, people were named for a reason. Last names could indicate occupations like Smith, Carpenter, or Baker. They might also tell others the identity of your father like O’Hara or O’Brian. First names, however, have historically been different. If not named after a person or sacred figure, they usually reflected some physical characteristic, a virtue or pronouncement, or time, place, or event that happened at their birth.

The Names Of God

That got me thinking about the many names of God. Why are there so many? Why aren’t they translated as written originally in my bible? And, what am I missing by not using all of His names? My mind flashed back to my best friend’s recent memorial repast. She knew so many people from different walks of life that many groups didn’t overlap or even know each other. Sitting at a table across from us was a group that seemed insulated like that. There were unsure glances and a kind of tension. They didn’t know my name, but I knew them so I smiled, told them I remembered them from school, and called them by their names. It changed the dynamic.

He Knows My Name

I’m glad I’m a child of God – that He knows my name. But, today I felt so strongly that I needed to call on Him by His names. There is a purpose, an order, and a story behind each of them and it matters. My “teacher name” is different depending on who’s calling me – student or colleague. My “mother” and “wife” names are different as well. Friends and acquaintances also call me different names. Even family members called me by different names. So which one is really me? All of them. 

God’s Name Is Bigger

Of course, God’s name is bigger than two or three names. Each one tells us about some aspect of who He is, what He does, or His position. YHWH (Yahweh) and Jehovah mean “I am who I am” The Lord is an approximate translation of Yahweh. In fact, many of His names begin with Jehovah and end with an explanation. The Lord is: my provider, healer, the one who sanctifies, who is peace,  who rewards, destroys evil,  or is most high. Jesus too tells us His many names, “I am the way, the truth and the life,” the door,” “the light,” “the shepherd.”  Of course, the Holy Spirit also has more than one name.  It only makes sense that our savior would have so many different names to help us understand His character.

Parent, Advisor, Protector

Maybe it’s because my kids are all technically adults now that this has hit home so hard. Somtimes they want to talk to me as Mom, other times they want a sounding board. “Fix it” Mom’s ears have to be different than, “We listen and don’t judge” Mom’s ears. I’ve asked, Do you want my opinion, help figuring out what you missed, or do you just want to talk? I don’t stop being me. Nor have I lost the power to do all of the things I did before, but it’s important for me to hear them by the name they are calling me. I wonder if that is true of God too.

Praying using a specific name doesn’t just tell God what I need, it also demonstrates that I trust that aspect of His nature. When I pray to Jehovah Jireh, The Lord Will Provide, I’m acknowledging that He will provide for me from my first address to the end of my request. Jehovah Rapha – The Lord Who Heals – knows why I came, what I’m asking for, and that I know that He can do it. I think this is another level of praying with intention. I think it’s important to call Him by His name. What do you think?