Names

I learned an interesting concept in my social psychology class last year. It's called the cocktail effect. Here's an example: You're in a room, standing elbow-to-elbow with a crowd of friends. Music is blaring so loud you must shout to be heard. Yet, somehow, in all the chaos, you hear someone on the opposite side of the room say your name.
According to my textbook, this phenomenon illustrates how important we are to ourselves.
Our name is important.
At the daycare, I could mispronounce any word under the sun, and the children would simply laugh at me. BUT, if I mispronounce their names too many times, they get fierce. Are we much different? We only let a select few call us by nicknames. The first thing we use as an introduction is our name (as if "Rebecca" actually reveals something about who I am). Businesses have made money off the importance of names. Ever travel and buy yourself a key chain, bookmark, coffee cup, or the like with your name on it? I own a key chain that's a flip flop with my name on it. I bought it in Florida while on vacation. You see, I'd lost my other key chain that had my name, so I had to replace it =).  I also have a coffee cup that's labeled with my mother-given mark.
We are made in God's image. If our names matter to us, how much more does God's name matter to Him? The third commandment tells us not to misuse His name. His name is to be cherished and feared. Psalms 111:9 says, "He has paid a full ransom for his people. He has guaranteed his covenant with them forever.
What a holy, awe-inspiring name he has!"
I tried to look up all God's names in the Old Testament to show you all, but there were way too many to write down. I challenge you to look them up. Every one of them displays a  fragment of God's character. My personal favorite is Yahweh-Jireh (The Lord Will Provide). The name reminds me that God will always take care of my family. To truly know God, all His names must be taken into account.
Another piece of information I found on my search was that God had three shifts in how He was known. Exodus 6:2-3 says that from Adam to Moses, He was known as El-Shaddai (God Almighty). From Moses to the New Testament, God revealed Himself as Yahweh. Now, God is known to us through Jesus. His name is the only one by which we are saved (Acts 4:12). Romans 10:13 says, "'Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'" There is no name more powerful than that of Jesus Christ our Lord.

If you don't know Him. If you can't yet call Him friend and savior, remember this. He's only a call away.