What is Your Name?
Scripture — Isaiah 62:2-4, 11-12 (NRSV)
The nations shall see your vindication,
and all the kings your glory;
and you shall be called by a new name
that the mouth of the LORD will give.
You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD,
and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
You shall no more be termed Forsaken,
and your land shall no more be termed Desolate;
but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her,
and your land Married;
for the LORD delights in you,
and your land shall be married. . . .
The LORD has proclaimed
to the end of the earth:
Say to daughter Zion,
“See, your salvation comes;
his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.”
They shall be called, “The Holy People,
The Redeemed of the LORD”;
and you shall be called, “Sought Out,
A City Not Forsaken.”
Focus
God has a new name for you, a name that silences the names of hurt, shame, and limitation, a name that empowers and embraces. Will you receive this new name?
Devotion
I have three names: Mark David Roberts. Roberts is the surname I received from my father. David was my father’s first name. I have always been glad to have it as my middle name. Mark is my first name. I was named Mark because my mother, a second-grade teacher when I was born, had a boy in her class named Mark. Apparently, he was a good student and a pleasant person, so I inherited his name. (Now that my mother is with the Lord, I’ll admit that I never really liked the name Mark. It seemed like a weak name to me. I wish I had learned early in life that Mark comes from the Latin name Marcus, related to Mars, the god of war. Originally, the name Marcus conveyed strength and courage. My five-year-old self would have liked to know that!)
What are your names? Yes, I’m including the names you were given at birth and, perhaps, in marriage. But I’m not asking only about those names. I’m wondering also about the names assigned to you by others, the labels used to identify you, the titles that have brought you honor or shame. I think, for example, of a woman I know whose father always referred to her as the smart one. Among her sisters, she did get the best grades. But when her father called her the smart one, she knew that he was also implying that she was not as pretty as her sisters. The smart one, for her, was a name that made her feel ashamed of her average looks.
Have you ever been given a name that hurts or perhaps limits you in some way? Maybe somebody important to you called you loser and you began to think of yourself that way. Or maybe you’ve been the recipient of an ethnic slur, a name that caused you to doubt who you are as a distinct and beautiful child of God.
Titles in the workplace can empower or discourage us. When you’re given a new, authoritative title, you may find yourself working better than ever before. Or perhaps you yearn to be something more than the assistant director. When will you be a full director? Maybe you’re tired of being called the bean counter just because you actually care about the financial health of your organization, unlike your risk-taking colleagues.
In Isaiah 62, we learn that the Israelites had been identified with disheartening names. They were called Forsaken and their land Desolate (62:4). These names stung because the Israelites truly felt as if God had deserted them, and they grieved over the desolation of their land.
Yet, through Isaiah, God promised to give the Israelites new names. In Isaiah 62:4, they would not be Deserted but Hephzibah, which means in Hebrew, “My Delight Is in Her.” Their land would be called not Desolate but Beulah, which meant “married [to God].” Then, in verse 12, the Israelites would be called “The Holy People, The Redeemed of the LORD_… Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.” God would give the chosen people new names that represented their redeemed and renewed reality.
Do you need to discover the new name or names God has for you? Do you need to know that you are a Saint, one of God’s holy people, set apart for God and God’s purposes? Do you want to see yourself as one who has been Redeemed? Do you long to know that you are indeed Sought After by God? How would your life be different if you believed that God’s Delight is in You?
God has a new name for you, a name that silences the names of hurt, shame, and limitation, a name that empowers and embraces. Will you receive this new name?
Reflect
Can you think of names, titles, or labels that have given you a sense of your own identity? Have these been positive or negative?
Are there names you have received that hurt you or keep you back? What are these names and where did they come from?
Can you accept for yourself the names given to God’s people in Isaiah 62?
Act
Pick one of the names God gives you in Scripture, perhaps saint, beloved, or child (daughter or son). Take some time to reflect on that name and the difference it can make in your life. Talk with God about your reflections.
Pray
Gracious God, you know the ways our names form us. Sometimes they encourage and empower. Sometimes they wound and limit. Like the Israelites, sometimes the names, titles, and labels applied to us have hurt, augmenting our shame and limiting our vision.
O Lord, may we receive new names from you. May we know that we are Saints, set apart for you! May we understand that we are Redeemed and live in the joy of our redemption! May we believe, deep down, that we are Sought After by you, and that Your Delight is in Us!
May we be named and defined by you, by your grace and love, and by your desire for us. Amen.
Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Praying with Passion.
Mark D. Roberts
Senior Strategist
Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a Senior Strategist for Fuller’s Max De Pree Center for Leadership, where he focuses on the spiritual development and thriving of leaders. He is the principal writer of the daily devotional, Life for Leaders,...