There's Just Something About That Name, Kelli Zaniel

“Dope!” My two year old roars as she intently climbs the stairs. She meets her sister in the hallway and they disappear into the bedroom. I hear the word “dope” jingling through the air several more times but no clue of its meaning. Seemingly, they know what it means. I shrug my shoulders and chalk it up to the jibber jabberings of a two year old.

The next day we sit together on the couch flipping through old scrap books. The over-excited squeals of my two year old interrupt our drive down memory lane. Her dimply pint-sized finger points out her sister, Sammy Hope, in the picture. “Dope,” she exclaims with a big grin. I realize that "dope" translates into Sammy Hope.

I ask Sammy Hope about the new name. She says, “That’s Scarlett’s special name for me…I think I’m the only one who understands it.”

Isn’t it amazing to think that God has a special name for us too? A name only He will know and we will recognize. It will sound like jibber jabber to the average person; but to us and God, the meaning will be crystal clear. The book of Revelation tells us when the baby blue sky zips open and Jesus charges through it on his beaming white horse, we will be assigned a new heavenly name. Ever thought about what yours might be?

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it,” (Rev. 2:17, NIV).