THE VALUE OF A NAME

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

Ecclesiastes 7:1 (AMP)

“A good name is better than precious perfume……..”

When God anoints a name, it becomes established, and it’s remembered by all generations. There are names that are still significant even when those individuals are long gone. You can be known to be trustworthy, honest, reliable and a person of integrity even when you are not rich; for an upright character is just enough to push you into prosperity and blessings. 

When Satan wants to hold your success, breakthrough or progress in life, he will hold your name first. There are names that are known for all the wrong reasons and with no credibility - crowning you as a failure, forlorn and frail person; such a name cannot take you far in life. Indigenous names like “Zirabamuzaale” “Bizibu” etc declare negativity into our lives and destiny, no wonder you are ever toiling because of the meaning behind your name.

Significance of A Name
In a battle led by Alexander III the Great, a young soldier who was causing problems among other soldiers was brought before him. Alexander the Great asked the soldier; ‘what’s your name?’ The young soldier replied: “Alexander.” Alexander the Great then told him; ‘either change your name or change your conduct.’ -  Names represent character, identity and authority.

Names are special and they should be. In Jesus’ days even more so in the Old Testament, names meant a little bit more than they do today. For instance, the name “Isaac” means “laughter” The name “Jacob” means “heel grabber or supplanter” Why? In bible, names either described the circumstances or the character of the one born, and we read many times when God changed a person’s name and gave him or her a new name; it was usually done to establish a new identity. For example;

·        Jacob (supplanter) was renamed Israel ("who prevails with God") – Genesis 32:8 

·        Abram (noble father) was renamed Abraham (father of many nations)- Genesis 17:5 and,

·      Sarai (quarrelsome) was renamed Sarah (Princess-mother of nations) – Genesis 17:15

These days, people name their children after famous people, places or words that sound sweet and hyper but with a negative meaning or no meaning at all. Do you know the meaning of your name?  

A good name makes people bow; a good name will make you earn people’s trust, it can take you places and open doors for you. It’s your responsibility to keep your name a good name so that when it is spoken; hopefully good things come to mind and that is why you should pray to God to anoint your name.

The Name Above All Names
There are a lot of names that are historically loud, and carry significance; yet, throughout history there is no other name that carries life, truth, depth, Salvation and power than the name of JESUS. Acts 4:11-12 (NIV) declares; 
“Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

Do you know why there’s no other name? Because there’s no other name! It’s that simple. In no other name is there salvation and life. In no other name is there healing and restoration, comfort, reconciliation, hope, forgiveness, strength, peace, protection, truth, freedom, and about a million other things. His name is enough! We don’t need the name of martyred saints or religious leaders or any other man or woman. The name of Jesus is adequate for all of our needs - It’s a special name. Even the devil knows how special the name of Jesus is!

Having gone through all that he went through, Jesus humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death at the cross but after all that he was given a name above all names

Philippians 2:9-11(NKJV) says; Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

There is power in a name!

CHOOSE FAITH, NOT FEAR

Pr. James Victor Lubwama 

Fear is an acronym expounded as;

F-  False
E - Evidence 
A  -  Appearing 
R -      Real 

Whereas FAITH according to Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV) is described as “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" OR as Hebrews 11:1 (TLB) explicates; “the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead.”

Satan uses fear to govern people’s lives while God uses Faith. Fear and faith cannot coexist! When fear takes over a person's heart, faith runs away; they can neither sit in the same place (heart) at the same time nor operate at the same time.

The foundation of faith is the Word of God while the foundation of fear are lies of the world. You can't have faith without the word of God. For example if you are believing God to heal you of a sickness, you must have heard a Rhema word regarding the healing you need - for instance, Psalm 103:3-4 (NKJV) which assures that; "Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercies," This word forms the foundation of your healing.

When you receive the word of God, it becomes the foundation of your faith because faith comes by hearing the word of God. When you hear someone speak about increase, multiplication, wonders, healing, expansion and you accept the message with your heart and, confess it with your mouth, it becomes operational in your life’s situation. It's the Word that you have heard that pushes you to believe. Romans 10:16-17 (TLB) says; 
‘But not everyone who hears the Good News has welcomed it, for Isaiah the prophet said, “Lord, who has believed me when I told them?” 17 Yet faith comes from listening to this Good News—the Good News about Christ.’

After the Word has been spoken, fear, uncertainty and confusion sneaks in. You start wondering like Mary did when she received the word that she was to give birth to Jesus. Luke 1:34 (ESV) says; "And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” Or like Abraham when he got his word regarding a child. Genesis 17:17 (ESV) “Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born to a man who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” You end up doubting the word and hence giving fear a foothold.

Many times we focus on the surrounding circumstances, we imagine that some prophesies or situations are impossible; we reason that we are too old or not worthy of what has been spoken. But if God has spoken a word, He is also ready to perform what He spoke; He assures us in Psalm 89:34 (NKJV) that; “My covenant I will not break, nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips.”

Oswald Chambers, in My Utmost for His Highest, said: "The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty. We can be certain of God, even if we are uncertain of the next step He wants us to take. We can be certain of God's plan for us, even if we are uncertain of the specific details. Even though we're uncertain, we can be confident that God will not disappoint us”

Many times we do certain things in fear; we offer or sow a seeds in order to save our jobs, or get something more in return. We don’t do the above out of obedience but motivated by fear because we anticipate something bad will happen to our family or businesses. You will never see God if you do anything motivated by fear, because God honours actions that are faith driven; anything done out of fear cannot earn you a breakthrough or a blessing!

In order for you to see God in your life, you need to choose faith not fear because He is faithful and will surely perform what he spoke. Jeremiah 1:12 (AMP) says; ‘Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am [actively] watching over My word to fulfill it.”

What God has planned will come to pass. Psalm 33:8-11(NLT) says;
“Let the whole world fear the Lord, and let everyone stand in awe of him. 9 For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command. 10 The Lord frustrates the plans of the nations and thwarts all their schemes. 11 But the Lord’s plans stand firm forever; his intentions can never be shaken.”

Most people are not persevering or courageous. They are so scared and torn in pieces by different life circumstances; they are afraid to get out of their comfort; they are afraid of failure, poverty, death etc. They are not walking confidently by faith but they are just drifting through life enslaved by fear; while some other instead of believing God and his word, they turn to self-help books for redemption. Satan is nothing but a thief, destroyer and deceiver, and he goes around roaring fear, and when we scatter, we end up in the wrong places because of the traps he has set: So when fear roars, its no what you are running from that holds control over you, but its the act of running that pulls you away from God; you become so fear-centred instead of standing on the rock - word of God and trusting Him to help you overcome

The difference between the Bible and self-help books by different moguls, investors, politicians, life coaches and other people who have succeeded in the various fields is that; self-help books often give you a wide perception about an issue. The dos, don’ts and how’s but they don’t give you the power to do it. They are helpful, yes, but they don’t have the power to activate what’s been written. They aren’t alive, but God’s word not only tells you what to do; it gives you the power to do it.

Faith is God’s Word activated. If you’ve ever read a verse in the Bible and all of a sudden thought, I can do this: I can be healed, i can build a house, I will bear children; you’ve just had your faith activated by the Word of God. 

Everyone is haunted by fear at a certain time, but it’s what you do when fear thunders in your mind. When you’re afraid, you will probably respond in one of these ways: to embrace fear; to run from fear; or to face up fear with faith.

Face the reality, discard fear and choose faith!

BENEFITS OF SERVING THE LORD

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

Exodus 23:25-27 (NKJV)

“So you shall serve the Lord your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you. 26 No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.  27 “I will send My fear before you, I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come, and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you.” 

i)  25(b)……. He will bless your bread and your water…..”

To bless your food and water means blessing the works of your hands – job or business; when you serve the Lord, then the one you serve obliges to bless the works of your hands. 

ii)  26(a) “No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land……….”

Our plans and projects shall not die at the initiation or foundation stage. Nothing can sabotage them but instead they thrive and grow because of God’s backup and blessing. 

iii)  26(b) “……….…..I will fulfill the number of your days.” 

This means that you will perform your duties or assignment up to the end and, nothing and no one will take you out of your job or business when it is not yet time. It will not happen for you to leave your employment, business or marriage. Nothing will take you out of the blessings that the Lord has given you! 

iv)  27 “I will send My fear before you, I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come, and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you.

To see the back of your enemies happens when you have the fear or terror of God upon you - when God goes ahead of you with his terror, your enemies scatter. Without the terror or fear of God upon you, people can despise and disrespect you; they can rob your assets and fraud you etc.

An example of ferocious people in our African setting are witches. In the African setting especially in villages, when we were still children we heard stories about witches and what would happen to a person who stole their belongings or conned them. We were told that if someone stole their harvest or possession, a certain force would make you return what you stole, or the things one stole would scream at night for you to return them, so we had that kind of fear for those people. In the same way but for a different purpose, because of the fear of God upon you, you will be shielded. People will look at you mysteriously but with respect. They will say; ‘we cannot understand that person’, maybe he or she is related to a high profile person or a friend of the minister - all that happens when the fear of the Lord goes before you, and clears the way for you.

Saved for Service

The Bible says in 2 Timothy 1:9 (TLB) that; “It is he who saved us and chose us for his holy work not because we deserved it but because that was his plan long before the world began…..” God created you to help others - serving God is serving people! Regardless of your job, profession or talent, you are called to serve; a non-serving Christian is contradictory to the gospel and God's plan.

We were not saved to become spectators in the kingdom of God but servants serving with a purpose of advancing His kingdom; we are; Saved ➡Called ➡ Purposed ➡ & Graced. 2 Timothy 1:9 (AMP) says; “[For it is He] Who delivered and saved us and called us with a calling in itself holy and leading to holiness [to a life of consecration, a vocation of holiness]; [He did it] not because of anything of merit that we have done, but because of and to further His own purpose and grace (unmerited favor) which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began [eternal ages ago]” 

Every Christian is called to service - saved to serve. When you use your God-given abilities to help others and build his kingdom, you are fulfilling your calling. Romans 7:4 (GNT) says; “And now you belong to him who was raised from death in order that we might be useful in the service of God.”

We are saved to serve!