Your Name, Your ID, Your Purpose...Do You Know It.

One of the deepest statements I have heard in recent years came from the most unlikely of sources….Steve Harvey (don’t worry this is not about Think Like A Man Act Like A Lady). Though it isn’t a shock to me that it came from him it maybe a shock to some of my readers that I am referencing him. I reference him because the statement he made is the context of something I have been teaching for years. Steve said “The 2 most important days in your life is the day you were born and the day you find out why!” Man that’s deep. Even if it isn’t deep to you it is deep to me. What Steve was talking about was your purpose now purpose isn’t the topic of today’s entry it does have something to do with it. See today’s topic deals with the importance of your identity and the role your name plays in it.

Most people I know have a misconstrued opinion about identity and your name. Your identity is who you are; your name is who you are. Which says your identity and your name are basically one in the same. Think of it this way, if a cop pulls you over and asks to see your I.D (identity) you pull out your driver’s license and the first thing the cop looks at is…….your name. Why is that? It’s because your name is your ID, then he looks at the picture to make sure you really are the name that they ID belongs to. If you go to open a checking account they ask you for 2 forms of ID both forms must have on it…..your name. Why is that? Again, it’s because your name is your ID. Now if your name is your ID and your name is who you are and your name has a definition (as all names do whether you know yours or not) than the definition of your name is who you are. This my friends is the power of words. The Holy Bible says in Proverbs 18:21: Death and Life are in the power of the tongue and they that love it will eat the fruit thereof. All that means is that words have power, they have the power to bring life to a situation or death it all depends on what you say. If your name has a definition and your name is you that means you are the word of your name personified. Meaning you are walking around life or death just by being you. My wife knows someone whose name is Wrath (no joke that is his actual name). Let’s look at the definition of Wrath according to Dictionary.com.  Wrath is strong, stern, or fierce anger; deeply resentful indignation; ire. Now would anyone be surprised if I told you that this kid has anger management issues? Probably not because His name means that and if you think he is trying to live up to his name your wrong. This kid barely knows what the word means yet he exemplifies its very definition. He is always throwing toys at other kids, pushing them around, taking stuff from other kids. When you try to talk to him, he throws these horrible tantrums. HIS NAME IS WRATH PEOPLE! His name has shaped his destiny. That is a spirit he’ll have to battle for the rest of his life.

Please realize that the reason for this is because his parents who didn’t understand the spiritual power their words have (saved or not) spoke this over the life of their son. Now even if he doesn’t want to he is that thing and will have to fight it. Why do you think God is in the habit of changing the names of His people, Sari to Sarah, Abram to Abraham, Saul to Paul, Jacob to Israel, Simon to Peter. He did so because in changing their name He was changing their destiny and making a covenant with their destiny. Whether you realize it or not your name dictates a lot of your decisions which dictates your destiny. I was in a discussion on FB concerning names and I was amazed that some of the people I thought would think it has an effect didn’t. Your name is you and therefore is your destiny. Jesus’ name means Savior isn’t that what He came to do seek and to SAVE them which are lost (Luke 19:10)? Lucifer even had a name change we now call him Satan which literally means the adversary of God (according to dictionary.com), why because His destiny changed from that of the chief praise and worship leader in heaven to the enemy of God and all He stands for. 

I bring all of this up to help you understand that your purpose, your true purpose not your passion or desire but the reason you were created is contained in your name. When you learn what your name means you will find out your purpose and the only way to change that is for God to give you a new name. So in truth you ought to find out what God calls you and the only way to do that is to develop a true relationship with Him. You can do that or risk wondering your life hoping to stumble upon your purpose. Once you find the purpose for your life you can better than know how to live. Your name is your identity and wrapped there in is your purpose. I pray this has been some help to someone struggling to find purpose in your life. Be careful what you name a thing (your situation, your spouse, your job, your kids, or yourself) because what you name it you have defined. Grow in God’s Grace and Abide In His Love!