The Holiness of Your Name
All my life, I’ve struggled to accept my birth name. “How do you pronounce it again?” is a question as common to me as someone asking, “What time is it?” My response is as automatic as blinking. “It’s pronounced,” I always preface by saying, “Tashma (Taj-Ma). You know, sort of like the Tajmal Hall in India.” The responses I typically receive range from ‘Awww…that’s pretty!’ to ‘That’s ghetto…what was your Mama thinking about?’ Quite frankly, there was a time not too long ago that I quite agreed with the later of the two statements. I truly did dislike…no…that’s not a strong enough word, “I loathed my name!” Growing up, my world was full of Natashas and LaTashas but only I was addressed as…Tashma.
I once asked my mother, “Why in the world did you give me that name?” Bewildered, she instantly replied, “Tashma, is a beautiful name! Your Aunt Sheila said that name came to her one day when I was pregnant with you.” She smiled and beamed with pride, “I was either going to name you that or Margaret Louise after your grandmother.” “Uaaaaargh,” I silently protested, “That meant my name was doomed to be jacked up either way!” I thought. Shaking my head, I realized that my sweet and soft-spoken Momma simply had no clue to my heartfelt frustration. I really shouldn’t have been surprised though. I mean this is the same little woman who is, bless her heart, notorious for showing off my childhood photos to family friends. The problem is, however, some of those pictures showcase my gladly forgotten but infamous 4th Grade Jheri Curl. Now…you talk about embarrassing…Lord have mercy!
In getting back to my name, I truly never appreciated it until one day while praying the Lord spoke to me and clearly said, “You must write only under your birth name.” “What?” I panicked and asked. Surely, I had mistakenly heard Him. The Holy Spirit once again repeated, “You must write only under your birth name.” “Oh Lord, no!” I whined. “I hate having to explain my name to people!” Out of nowhere, a spirit of peace settled on me like a warm blanket on a cold wintry night. I instantly felt a sense of comfort. I then knew this was the Lord’s desire. Some time later while living in Maryland, a beloved Jewish friend educated me on the Hebrew meaning of my name. She informed me that Ta’ shma is an Aramaic expression that means, “Come and Hear” or “Come and Learn.” “Wow!” I thought. “That’s pretty cool…I like it!” I declared for the first time. I had an epiphany and finally understood that my name had been destined to point me towards my purpose. How so, you may wonder? As a writer, one of the things that we strive for is to create a body of work that people will want to “Come and Hear” or have a desire to want to read. Who would have ever thought that my name would reveal the true meaning of my calling, which are the Spiritual Gifts of Exhortation and Teaching. Sure, everyone understands the basic concept of teaching but many are unfamiliar with Exhortation. The Spiritual Gift of Exhortation is to, “To encourage and uplift others through the Word of God.”
However, I must say, it wasn’t until I came across Luke 10:20 NIV that I truly began to grasp the blessing of a believer’s name. It says, “…do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Hold up, let’s read that last part again… “rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Can you fully comprehend that your name is written in heaven? It is the Holy Temple of God! And yet, once we surrender our life to Jesus Christ, our names exist there, too. It does not matter who you’ve slept with in the past, the current balance in your checking account, limited education, whether or not you’ve ever been married, or your current circumstance. When we repent of our sins and truly give our life to the Lord, our names are written in heaven and become Holy. Is that not mind blowing? I don’t care if you were named Frankenstein…once you become saved…your name resides in heaven, with the King of Kings and His angels. So, no matter what you experience in this day, my friend. Rejoice in knowing that you and your name truly do have purpose!
