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When God changes your name it’s for His purpose
She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. Ruth 1:20 (NASB)
By Bobby R. Henry, Sr.
As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving several thoughts crossed my mind : a name change, unbaling my fist and the need for hope.
Throughout the Bible God changed the names of many people and places. The Bible doesn’t state God’s explanations, but then again maybe it was to bring to their attention that they were set apart for a totally unplanned assignment in their life on their part.
Perhaps the new name was a way to let them in on the divine plan that God had in store for them or also to assure them that God’s plan would be fulfilled through them for His bigger picture.
When God gave a person a different name or a new name, generally a brand new personality was created.
Why did God choose new names for some people? No one truly knows, but we do know that their lives changed. They had a spiritual encounter that changed them forever, and they fully accepted their mission after the change.
He said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.” Genesis 32:28; for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. Genesis 17:5
Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. Genesis 17:15
Even though the name may have been changed, the fight is a little different.
A name change may mean that sometimes we have to unball our fist to fight.
Remember a closed hand can’t receive anything and through opened hands many blessing were given. “While the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and laying His hands on each one of them, He was healing them.” Luke 4:40
Remember its Thanksgiving, not thanks for taking. You give with opened hands and throughout the history of this country things have been forced from the hands of others through balled up hands turned into fist, used for taking and destroying.
Let’s stop taking with our fist and begin to love more with our opened hands.
When I was younger I heard my grandmother say “let me hope you”. Let me hope you to do such and such…
When I first heard her say that I thought it was kind of funny and I said to myself, wow grandma used the wrong word. Now that I have gotten older, I understand that the words are interchangeable based upon the spiritual intent.
I have heard this word used a number of times, even used by my father. What is strange though is how I only heard older Black people use the term.
I’m not saying that other races of people do not use it in the same way of my parents, grandparents and older Black people; it’s just that I’ve never heard a white or non-Black person use it.
As I think about its use, I really believe that I would rather one to “hope me” than to help me. I say that because in today’s thought process by a lot of people, help is associated with money.
I’m sure that when our elders used hope it never was associated with any form of pay.
We made it because we hope each other through prayer, reciprocal services, trusting and standing up to our word.
So this Thanksgiving my prayer is that we get a name change from God, we unball our fist and extend open hands to one another to help, not to hurt and hope each other to be better children of God.
Happy Thanksgiving!!
GOD DESERVES ALL OF THE THANKS FOR GIVING HIS ONLY SON
