What’s your name?

“What’s your name?” I ask. And the man stumbles over his answer. 

Gives me one response. Then another. 

At first I think it’s miscommunication. I’m still learning culture and language, after all.

But soon I hear the story behind the struggle. 

His story. 

Wrong name

When he was a little boy, his adoptive parents changed his name. Not just once. But over and over.

Confusing. He was never sure if his mother was calling him or someone else.

“Why did they change your name?” I ask.

And at first he hesitates. Then explains.

Renamed

Sometimes a baby constantly cries or fusses or cannot sleep. Or a child is always getting into trouble.

So, they say he has the wrong name.

The ones who named him made a mistake.

And he must be renamed. With ceremony.

Ceremony involving red porridge, white porridge, coffee, tea. 

Requirements handed down for generations.

Shadows

A matter of spirits and powers—the mystical clouded with shadows.

Gripping lives. Shaping minds with fear. 

And these layers of belief go deep. Governing how they live.

Often denied by the religious. Yet lurking just beneath the surface.

Stirring in the corners of their lives. 

Confusion

Today, confusion over names proliferates. People struggle to identify reality. Understand what is true. 

Shadows of bewilderment. Marked by not-so-subtle ways of the deceiver. 

Casting doubt. Fear. Depression.

And I’m reminded of the young man who stumbled over his true name. Unsure of his own identity.

What’s your name?

Pray the light-filled truth of the gospel pierces this deception.

Ask the Maker of heaven and earth to expose the dark by His marvelous light.

We serve a God who calls us by name. And makes a way for all who will believe, to rest securely in Him. 

What’s your name?

Known. Chosen. Beloved.

We find our true identity in Him.

What about you?

Have you struggled with true identity? When did the Lord call you by name out of darkness?

Related posts

Coming through the night – Set free on the Sabbath – Be alert and pray – Colorful darkness – Sharing hope in the dark – Equip in the spiritual battle – Redeemed – 

Isaiah 43:1-7 – 1 Peter 2:9-10 – Romans 1:16 – Ephesians 1:3-14 –