In the bible, names were very important. A name was the reflection of who you were.
“Many names described
nations, people, and ancient history. Some described expressions of hopes,
revelations of divine purposes, and prophecies of the future. Some were part of
genealogical histories, as it was common in Jewish customs to keep a family
history. Sometimes names indicated certain circumstances with their birth or
family line. Characteristics and traits of people were an important aspect of
names in ancient Israel.” Wikipedia.com
God also gave people new names as they entered into
different stages of their lives: Abram
became Abraham (Genesis 17:5), Sarai became Sarah (Genesis 17:15) and Jacob became Israel
(Genesis 32:28). Their new names
reflected the future plans that He had for them.
As I pondered on this one day, I began to think about my
name, Sherri, and what the meaning might be (because there is a story behind my
name)…
My mother told me that the entire nine months that she was
carrying me, she knew that I would be a girl.
She had prayed for a girl, because they already had two boys. Actually, my middle brother and I were not
even supposed to be here. After the
birth of my oldest brother, my parents were told that they could not have any more
children because there was a problem with my mother’s womb. When my oldest brother was eight, my mother
became pregnant with my second brother.
They were overjoyed and knew that he was a miracle…but not only did they
get one miracle, they got two! My middle
brother was only four months old when she became pregnant with me.
(As I got older, I asked my mom if I was a
mistake, because who in their right mind would get pregnant on purpose when
they already had a four month old??
She
said “absolutely not, I wanted a girl so badly
I would have kept having babies
until I got one!”)
Now…on to the story
of my name…Until the moment she saw me, my name was going to be Rebekah Dawn. It did not have any significant meaning…she
just liked that name. But after I was
born, she looked at me and decided that I didn’t look like a “Rebekah Dawn”, I
looked like a “Sherri LaJuan” instead.
(How does a baby not “look” like one name or the other??? I asked her,
“Where in the world did you come up with that name??”
She didn’t know the answer to that…she said
it just came to her.)
Anyway, that is
how I became Sherri LaJuan.
I have always
wondered why she changed my name like that…because honestly I have never liked
my name. I thought Rebekah Dawn was so
much prettier!! But now I believe that
it was divine interruption on that day.
God had a different name in mind that he dropped into her heart. Why?
Because he knew that when I was forty-three years old I would search out
the meaning of that name and it would solidify what He wanted me to know about
myself.
Sherri means “beloved” or
“darling” or greatly loved.
LaJuan is derived from John which means
“Yahwah is gracious” or God is merciful and compassionate.
How beautiful! I am
greatly loved by God and He is merciful and compassionate to me. Now every time I think about my name, that is
what I will see. Never again will I
regret not being named something different.
I have the exact name that God meant for me. So thank you Mom for following your heart and
giving me the name Sherri LaJuan.
It
suits me just perfectly.
“But now, this is
what the LORD says--- "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have
summoned you by name; you are mine.” Isaiah
43:1 NIV
***After I wrote this article, Jason Gray's song, "Remind Me Who I Am" came on the radio. These words stood out to me like never before, "If I'm Your beloved, can You help me believe it?"
Please listen to the song...it goes with this so perfectly!!
