What’s in a Name?
by Jilly Lyon-Taylor
A couple who work at Ellel Pierrepont have just had their first baby. As you can imagine, the arrival of the baby was eagerly awaited, not just by the parents but by the whole team, so it was a great thrill to receive the news in a text message from the father. In it he said: “It is with great excitement, joy, praise and thanksgiving that we announce the birth of … ”, and he gave the three names of the new little baby boy; the first two names being the ones chosen by the parents, and the third being his surname (or family name). It struck me then how significant the family name was for that little boy. In declaring it, a statement was being made about him belonging to his father and having an identity that can never be taken away from him.
Some of us have never had the security of belonging to a loving human family with a father who delights in us. Some of us may not even know who our earthly father was and we may therefore have struggled with our identity, not knowing who we really are. However, the truth is that every believer in Jesus Christ has been given the right to become a child of God (John 1:12). We have been chosen by God to be adopted into His family (Ephesians 1:5), with all the security of having a Father who delights in us (Zephaniah 3:17) and an inheritance in the Name which is above every name! That’s our identity, and that’s where we belong!
Just as little baby Timothy will always be known by his father’s family name and have the security of belonging, so once we are born again and adopted into God’s family, we will always belong to our Heavenly Father and have the security of our identity in Him. However difficult the circumstances of our lives in the past, that is the truth for each one of us now. We need to focus on that wonderful truth and not on the past situations which may have caused us to feel rejected, alone or abandoned. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 4:18 that we ‘Fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.’ Let’s focus on the fact that we will belong to our Heavenly Father for eternity!
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You that You have adopted me into Your family and given me the security of belonging to You. Help me to focus on this wonderful truth and to live in the assurance of it, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Jilly Lyon-Taylor is part of the Leadership Team at Ellel Pierrepont. She worked in publishing and then with children in Hong Kong before concentrating on being a full-time mother and serving in the local church. Her desire to see people healed led her to the Luke Nine Eleven Training Scheme(NETS) at Pierrepont, and now she teaches and ministers there.
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