What's In A Name?

 

What’s in a name?   Most people either have a nickname or know someone who has a nickname like “Shorty”, “Slim”, or “Goofy”.    While those names might not be the real names for the persons, they acquired them because they say something about the person or their character.    I am told that some Native American tribes in the past had the custom of giving persons a temporary name.  Once the person had lived a few years and the community got sense of the person they were, they gave them a more permanent name that said something about  who they were.

In the book of Acts 4, we read about Joe.  Joseph was his full name.   He was a levite, from the priestly lineage of Aaron, brother to Moses.    But he had another name.  Listen to what Acts 4:36 says about him:

³⁶ Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”), ³⁷ sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.  

 I want to be “mo’ like Joe.”    I want to be more encouraging.   In 1963, Morris West wrote a book titled The Shoes of the Fisherman.   The book tells a fictional story about the Pope, head of the Roman Catholic Church.   There is a scene in the book where the Pope escapes the pressures of  the papacy and Vatican City and travels out on the streets of Rome.  In a neighborhood, he comes across a home where a family is dealing with the death of a love one.   The call goes out on the street for a priest, and the disguised Pope rushes to the bedside where he offers  last rites for the deceased before  they take their last breath.   As the Pope lingers in the home beside the bed side with grieving family members, some members of the Papal staff discover him.    As the Pope hestitates a departure, one of his staff tells him:   “Father, come now.   Dying is easy, but it the living that gets us down”.     There is much in the world that can easily get us down:   news reports,  social media attacks,  economic tensions, politics, and much more.    

 I want to be like Joe.   I want to encourage my  grandchildren as they grow up and my children as they maneuver the challenges of parenthood, marriage, and living in this 21^st century.   I want to encourage friends and fellow believers as they face the challenges of these days.  In Acts 11: 22-24, it speaks further about  Joseph better known as Barnabus: 

²² News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. ²³ When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. ²⁴ He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

 Mo’ like Joe.   That is my goal and aim for  myself.   The world surely needs more sons and daughters of encouragement.   How about you?   Have a joy-filled week.-  Pastor Randy Wall

 

PRAYER     I give you thanks, O God, for the  family, friends, and fellow believers who have encouraged me through the years.  Help me to do the same; through Christ our Lord. Amen.