My Name Is VictoriousVoorbeeld

I’ve been called many names in my lifetime. My dad calls me Kiddo. My mom calls me Sissy. My husband calls me Babe. My kids call me Mom. My church family has called me a variety of names, including Mrs. Pastor. We all have names we carry around with us. Some of them are wonderful and we wear them with pride. Others, not so much. I’ve taken on names like: Not Enough Unqualified Damaged Depressed Overwhelmed Maybe you carry names like that around too. Ever wanted to trade those names for a new name? I certainly have. Tucked away in Revelation 2, Jesus promises, “I will give to each one a white stone, and on the stone will be engraved a new name that no one understands except the one who receives it” (verse 17). A new, God-given name engraved on a white stone? Sign me up. Is it really possible to trade in our old names for something new? Can we upgrade to far better names? The names we were created for all along? We can. Because God is in the upgrade business. He isn’t going to leave us in our old, broken down, torn up lives. God will come alongside us and upgrade us to something fresh and new — to something victorious. Maybe God—our Savior and Redeemer, The Mighty One—is whispering: I will exchange your burden for freedom your unworthy for valuable your insecure for confident your not enough for enough your damaged for restored and your bitter for grateful I will make peace your leader and righteousness your ruler. Let me have your old, hurtful names and harmful, distorted identities and instead make you victorious. I believe God is ready to make an exchange. I believe He is offering to let us trade in the names that have haunted us, followed us, and held us back. We can grasp new names and embrace the fact that Jesus has declared us victors, overcomers, and people worthy to be awarded a new name on a white stone. Your name is Overcomer. Your name is Conqueror. Your name is Champion. Your name is Victorious!