What is a name?
And in that day shall ye say, Praise the LORD, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted. (Isaiah 12:4)
What is in a name? Why do we give names to our newborns instead of numbers? Naming originated with Adam when God gave him the responsibility of naming all the creatures. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field… (Genesis 2:20) So, names allow us to identify and differentiate among ourselves. Names are influential and carry emotional weight for each individual because we can use names to honor relatives, remember loved ones, or further one’s legacy. Therefore, names can evoke pride, joy, love, and nostalgia.
A name is often a gift bequeathed by a parent or a loved one for a special reason. In other words, your name is a way of demonstrating your destiny. If the bequestor gives you a name unknowingly of such significance, the name will still manifest your destiny. I give this opinion because of my naming experience. Initially, I hated my name. My name served as the catalyst for many jokes among my peers. I knew the punch line prior to my introduction to an unfamiliar person. When someone asked my name, I replied Mickey. Immediately, the person will spell in rhythm – MIC-KEY, followed by M-O-U-S-E. Then, they followed with, “What is your official name, not your nickname” I repeated the name, Mickey, and explained that it is my birth name and listed on my birth certificate. Then, I noticed a puzzled look, so I imagined their thought process as to why a mother would name her child Mickey after a cartoon character. Yes, I agree that the famed association is Mickey Mouse, but this name includes other famous individuals like Mickey Mantle, Mickey Rooney, and even Mickey Baker, the renowned jazz guitarist. Yet, I still hated my name.
One day, I got enough courage to ask my mother why she named me Mickey. I even rationalized why not name me after a common family name like Locy. My grandfather was Locy, my father was Comer Locy, and my grandfather’s first grandson was Locy Lamar. It seemed logical to name me after my father or his father since I was the only son and my father the only son of his father. Yet, I even inquired why she didn’t reuse her father’s name, James. Her father named his firstborn son James Patrick, and even one of his first grandsons received the name, James Lamar. It was a no-brainer that my name should have followed the same pattern with either Locy James or James Locy, but her choice was Mickey Walden. After I presented my logical rationale for a different name, without any hesitation, my mother refuted my logic with this statement: I named you Mickey Walden because I wanted you to become different from the other men in the family. Wow! What a profound statement! She put in motion a journey that would evoke a different legacy instead of a continual legacy. She wanted something different from me, so she chose a unique identity of which my name alone could set me apart from the other men in my family. For the first time, I had a new perspective on my name, Mickey.
When Isaiah wrote the song found in the 12th chapter of the book of Isaiah, he noted that a day would come when we will recall, declare, and exalt the name Yeshuah (Jesus). On that day, we will express our gratitude for the ultimate deliverance of a defeated kingdom of darkness to reign with Jesus our Savior. We will express this gratitude by calling on His name, making His name known worldwide, and proclaiming that His name alone is exalted. When we realize the power of our name, we can acknowledge that no other name is above the name of Jesus.
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2:10-11 (NKJV)
When my mother explained why she selected the name Mickey Walden, I decided to look up the meaning, and to my surprise, the combined names meant to act like God in an untanned environment. It was my mother who placed me on a journey that I could never have imagined. Thus, I challenge you to define your name and determine whether it is in accordance with your destiny of becoming a citizen of God's Kingdom.
