Names

One thing about names: they are all God-given. Somehow, God influenced our parents to give us the names we now have. Our names are not an accident nor were they picked or created at random.

My own name means "rock, stubborn, pure, straight, honest". And I find that my personality seems to reflect my name. Could my parents have known how I would be like in the future when they registered my name?

Question: How true are we to our names? Are we living up to our names? If we aren't, it's not too late. With God's help, we can begin today to change so that God may be honoured each time our names are called or mentioned.

Consider how God named the first man, and the patriarchs named their children. Also Jabez whose prayer God answered so his name will be a blessing instead of it's actual meaning or significance.

One last thing: my friends were just blessed with a baby boy whom they fondly christened: Josiah "Jed", which prompted me to blog this. And I like that name because of the Biblical record.

I'd like to name my future son "Jedidiah" and daughter "Jemimah". Both names are mentioned in the Bible. Look them up if you'd like to know why I chose these names...

Incidentally, my nephews are named: Joshua and Jonathan. But I had these names in mind when I came across them as I read the Bible cover to cover, timed way before both my nephews were born.

Predestination

I believe that in God's Kingdom, everything will happen according to His plan.

Years ago, He impressed upon my heart the two Greatest Commandment: Love God, and Love People. Today, I see that He had prepared me on the first two purposes outlined by Purpose Driven Life (PDL) program in my current "home" church.

In 1998, God revealed the meaning of true worship to me: that worship is "everything I do, everything I say, everything I think, everything I am". Today, He has again reminded me of that truth through the PDL program.

That same year, God also taught me the importance of doing good works to prove my faith in Him. Today, He used the PDL program as a reminder of this fundamental truth.

In 2002, when I was thirty (the same age when Jesus started his ministry), I received an impression that, no matter what happens, I will survive the next three years. No accident or incident will take my life away, for like Jesus, "my time had not yet come". Today, I testify that He's true.

That same year (2002), I also received the impression that in three years' time (2005), I would experience death like Jesus, for he died when he was thirty three years old. Today, my testimony reveals that I had experienced a few deaths in 2005 (when I was thirty three): my ministry (after seven years with a Christian organization), my relationship (of seven years), and my leaving (my home, my parents, my home-town, and my home church where I lived and served God almost my whole life).

God has prepared me, and is preparing me for something. Whatever that is, He knows best. I'm grateful that He has chosen me and predestined me to fulfill His specially designed purpose. I am indeed very privileged to be of use to Him, and to be called a partner of God Most High. To God be all glory. Amen!

God Heals!

Wow! I thoroughly enjoyed myself at futsal last Sunday (4-6pm 19 March 2006). I played non-stop, one hundred minutes, match after match, goal after goal :p And this after three weeks of self-imposed rest from the game, all because I had played too much during my second futsal game of my life.

I can only thank God for the great time, for the stamina and energy, the skills He had helped me pick up in my teen years, and especially for healing me during my rest.