By Olubunmi Adebayo
*Every name is a story.*
*And behind every name, there is a story to tell.*
*Let us go through the account of one of the greatest name calls of all times :*
*Genesis 21: [1] And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken.*
*[2]For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.*
*[3]And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.*
*[6]And Sarah said, “God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me”.*
*After several years of waiting on the Lord for a child of promise to be born to them from the Lord, a period that was marked by agitation and anxiety by the couple, the child eventually came.*
*In fact, during the period of waiting, Sarah at a point in time laughed at the promise of God and God had to challenge her on it :*
*Gen 18: [9] And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent.*
*[10] And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.*
*[12] Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?*
*[13] And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?*
*Can you now see how Isaac came about his name when he was eventually born?*
*As you read this, there is a story behind the name you bear.*
*Know that there is so much about you and your past that is subsumed in your name(s).*
*Note that there is hardly any parent who gives a name to his or her child without a story behind the name.*
*Each name tries to explain a particular aspect of your past or the expectations for your future.*
*Sometimes, the stories are so deep, that if a man is not very determined, he may not be able to unearth the story about his story. And a story you are unable to unravel, may not be useful in providing hints for your journey of life.*
*When a woman calls her son “child of sorrow”, you must know there is a story behind her mind. Go and find out, and you will most likely discover she had been greatly denied joy before the arrival of the child so named (1Chro 4:9).*
*When a child is called Moses (i.e Drawn out of water), go and find out the story, and you will discover which water it was, what happened to warrant a child being thrown into the water, before being eventually brought out?*
*When a person bears the name “I will come out on Top” (which is the meaning of Joseph). Go and find out what happened that overwhelmed the man or woman by the circumstances of life to warrant saying “I will always come out on top”.*
*As individuals, we need to be conscious of the name we carry and the story behind them. When this is done, we stand the chance of understanding the circumstances of our birth and life, what our parents consider as values and virtues attached to such birth,etc.*
*The act of knowing the story behind our names will :*
*To be concluded tomorrow, God willing.*
Top of the day to you 👍
©️ Olubunmi S Adebayo.
