3 A New Name
When our firstborn son, Parker, was born, I would practice saying his name to hear how it sounded and writing it on paper to see how it looked. I would write “Parker McClellan” over and over on any scrap paper around. I loved how it looked.
We invest so much in naming. We take care to name our children, our businesses, even our cars, right? My husband, Earl, and I named our first car together Hannah. She didn’t have any air-conditioning, but she took us so far.
Naming is a sacred act. There’s so much power in the naming of objects and people.
Isaiah 62:1–2 reads,
Because I love Zion,
I will not keep still.
Because my heart yearns for Jerusalem,
I cannot remain silent.
I will not stop praying for her
until her righteousness shines like the dawn,
and her salvation blazes like a burning torch.
The nations will see your righteousness.
World leaders will be blinded by your glory.
And you will be given a new name
by the Lord’s own mouth.
You, my friend, are Zion in this verse. Because God loves you, He will not keep silent. And you will be given a new name straight from the Lord’s mouth.
Now listen, I know we’re all carrying names right now, and most of them aren’t the same ones on our birth certificates. I don’t know what labels have been forced on you. But I do know that God has a special, unique, beautiful, and wholly true name for you. Could you stretch your faith today and ask Him to prepare your heart to receive your new name? Because God’s not done with you yet. He’s working on your situation, on your life, and on you even now.
Maybe you were called hurtful names when you were a child. Bring them to mind now. Derogatory names and harsh comments are damaging, and sometimes we carry them deep within us for years and years.
No matter what names or comments are still in your head from years ago, I can tell you today that God wants to give you a new name. In fact, He gave new names to biblical characters frequently.
God spoke to the father of our faith, Abram, and gave him the new name Abraham.[1] The name Abram means “exalted father.” Abraham means “father of many.”[2] God essentially said to Abraham, “Not only are you going to be a father, but I’m also going to change the course of your life, and you’re going to be a father to many!” And God changed the name of Abraham’s wife from the endearing Sarai, meaning “my princess,”[3] to the royal Sarah, meaning “princess.”[4] He declared a new vision over their lives and signified it with new names.
A name change is fundamentally a change in God’s description of you, a clarification of His vision for your life. It usually means He’s changing some part of your life to fulfill His plan. When you get married, earn a PhD, or become a doctor, your name and signature change. In the same way, I want every woman reading this book to finish it with a new signature. You will no longer write what you heard growing up, whether you were called “dumb,” “bossy,” “ugly,” or “not good enough.”
Regardless of what labels weigh you down, there is a God in heaven who loves you and knows every aspect of you and your life. And He calls you by your true name.
One label I had to shake free of was the stereotypical idea of a pastor’s wife. I don’t play the piano, I don’t sing, I don’t wear dresses every Sunday, and the only hat I wear is a baseball cap. I love expressing myself through fashion. And I decided a long time ago to be committed to being myself even with a lot of eyes on me. People will try to limit you or put you into a certain mold. My pastor and mentor modeled for me that just because you’re a pastor doesn’t mean you have to force yourself to be something you’re not. She taught me to throw away labels and to remember at all times who God says I am.
God changed Abraham’s name, calling him a father of many, before the promise of the name came true. Let that sink in. You may be feeling forgotten or abandoned, but you can’t stay there, because God is saying, “You’re chosen. You’re appointed.[5] I have a plan and purpose for your life.”[6]
Sometimes we assume our names can’t change until we actually live in a new identity. But God changed Abraham’s name and spoke a vision over him long before he was a father of multitudes. Similarly, God can change your name before your circumstances change. He sees what we don’t see.
Abraham was in his nineties, and God still changed his name. I think about older women who are reading this. Now, I’m an older woman myself. Sometimes I forget that I’m in my forties, because I still feel like I’m in my twenties. So I go up to the young girls at my church, and I’m like, “Hey, girl!” And they say, “I love you so much! You remind me of my mom.” I guess I’m not as cool as I thought. But that’s okay. My point is, no matter how old you are, now is the perfect time to begin believing and living in the names God gives you.
God isn’t done with you. Your story isn’t over. He can give you a brand-new name whether you’re in your teens or sixties. When we get older, we sometimes think, I’m done. It’s the younger generation’s turn. Instead, be expectant and ask, “God, what’s my new name?”
God isn’t done with you.
Some of us just get stuck. We get used to our names and labels. But God is calling us to step out of our comfort zone. He’s calling us to step out in faith. You might hear,
You’re fat.
You’re never going to amount to anything.
You’ll always be depressed.
Your circumstance is never going to change.
You’re useless.
But God is bigger than those labels. He says,
None of those labels define you.
That lie is not your name.
I have given you a true name.
You are My chosen daughter.
