What's In A Name - The Names of God - ADONAI

The name, Adonai, means Lord..Master
According to www.thefreedictionary.com, the word Master means: One that has control over another or others
There are several instances of master/slave (servant) relationships in the Bible; some good, some not so good. This reference of God as our Master refers to a loving, caring, master who gives the utmost of care to his servants.

I imagine it to be like the relationship between a war dog and his master. These animals are 100 percent obedient to the one who controls them. Why? They are trained to, but also…because he loves the master and the master loves him.

To You I lift up my eyes, O You who are enthroned in the heavens! Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maidservant to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the LORD our God. Psalm 123:1-2

God is the only Master who gives more to his servants than is given to Him.

He gives us His grace

He gives us His mercy

He gives us His boundless love

He forgives our sins

He gave us His Son

For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God. Deuteronomy 10:17

Father…God…my Adonai, You are my Great Master. In You I put my trust and my faith. I praise Your holy name for loving me and taking care of all my needs like a beloved servant. All my love I give to You! Amen

Picture courtesy of: ww2incolor.com

What’s In A Name – The Names of God – YAHWEH

Names were very significant in biblical times. Names had meaning reflecting everything from the hopes of the mother to certain circumstances surrounding the child’s birth. A name could also reveal a divine purpose or perhaps a prophecy concerning the child’s future.

One of these instances is seen in the book of Ruth with Naomi, the mother-in-law of Ruth. Naomi means “pleasantness,” but when she becomes greatly afflicted following the death of her husband and sons, Naomi asks to be called, Mara, meaning “bitterness.”

Another reference to the meaning of a name occurs in 1 Chronicles 4:9 which states that Jabez was so named because his mother gave birth to him in pain. The actual word meaning is “sorrow.” Poor guy! I’d hate to carry that around my whole life.

Our obsession with names may be the reason Moses felt the need to know the name of the one who addressed him from the burning bush.

Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them” And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, “I AM has sent me to you.’” Exodus 3:13-14

The name God provided was Yahweh, LORD, Jehovah, Self-Existent One. By telling His name, God was saying He wanted to start a relationship with Moses…that He was willing to communicate with him. God also revealed His character by stating His name.

I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols. Isaiah 42:8

Holy Father, Yahweh, I praise your holy name. Yours is the name above all names and there is none like You. Thank You for revealing Yourself to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses and even to believers today. Without you in this world and in my heart I would want to be called Mara just as Naomi did. Praise be to Yahweh, the great I AM!

Tradition!

This week on the American Christian Fiction E-loop, writers are talking about their Christmas traditions and where they originated. This idea has prompted me to blog about some of my own Christmas traditions; old and new.

Each year at Christmastime my family participates in a variety of conventional and even a few unconventional celebrations. Our first Christmas tradition we’ll call Chinese Light Night! This is the night, usually a Friday or Saturday night just before Christmas when our family eats Chinese food (the restaurant must have dumplings) and then travels around town to one or more of the beautifully decorated neighborhoods around Houston. This is followed by Starbucks! Why Chinese food? It’s in honor of what the family had to eat in the movie, A Christmas Story after the Bumpus Hounds ate their Christmas turkey. I know, it’s silly, but it’s meaningful to us. Oh, as an added bonus, this year we all wore our footie pajamas in the car…and in Starbucks.

Our second Christmas tradition (in the past) has always been a silent communion service the Sunday evening before Christmas Day. This was a beautiful celebration of the partaking of the body and blood of Christ performed in complete silence. This year was different. Not in a bad way, just different. The service took place on Christmas Eve, officiated by our new minister. He preached on “God’s Indescribable Gift.” The sermon was followed by the second-most interesting communion service I’ve ever attended. The customary cup of juice and cracker was replaced with a self-serve, disposable juice and wafer cups. These were amazing, but difficult to open. Note: When casually asking ex-military named Bubba for help opening something, be prepared to have a knife pulled on you…in church! I would elaborate on my first, most interesting communion, but that would require another blog entry.

Our third and newest Christmas tradition was our celebration of Advent for the first time. This beautiful time of preparation of the Second Coming of Christ was a wonderful way to begin the Christmas season.

Of course we have many more traditions, but just like Christmas, this blog must come to an end. Until next year, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!