Today’s Lectio Divina: Excerpts from Psalm 33. (MsgB)

We’re depending on God; He’s everything we need.
What’s more, our hearts brim with joy since we’ve taken for our own His Holy Name.
Love us, God, with all You’ve got—that’s what we’re depending on.

So what’s in your wallet?

What does your driver’s license say? How about your credit cards? Oh yeah, and check out that social security card as well, as long as you’re looking.

In our twenty-first century world, our identity is tied ever so closely with what’s in our wallet. And unfortunately, we live in a time when protecting our identity from thieves is vitally important for survival. As I understand it, one of the newest forms of thievery is to steal a child’s identity, including of course, their social security number, and then go out and run up a bunch of bills on this unsuspecting victim. Only years later, when that child grows up and is ready to start buying and selling on their own, does this poor unsuspecting victim learn that his or her credit rating is shot to smithereens.

What a wonderful world we live in, huh?

So in this life, where personal identity is everything, where is our real social security found?

For the psalmist who sang Psalm 33, we see that he or she decided early on in life to drop any pretense of establishing his or her own name and identity in the world. For them, it was important to only be known as one who had taken, for their very own, His Holy Name. In other words, the psalmist thought of himself as no longer being a separate individual with a separate name and identity. No. For them, he or she saw herself so closely attached to God, so tightly knit together with Him in life, that they had traded in their last name, dropping their personal identity, so that they could be known as one who was identified as an adopted child of God.

So, no longer, would I be known as Martin Boller, but now, because of my commitment to being known as a son of my Creator/King, my true name in my wallet should read…Martin of Yahweh.

Hmm.

Sounds strange at first, doesn’t it? But quite honestly, that’s the way both the psalmist of Old Testament times and the writers of the New Testament saw a person’s commitment to the things of God. As Paul wrote to his friends in Ephesus, you and I are no longer strangers or aliens to the family of God, but are adopted in, or grafted, by the blood of Jesus, into the family line of God. (Ephesians 2: 19)

Martin of Yahweh.

Sounds different to the ears. But come to think about, I don’t think I’d mind putting both my name and my trust in the Name above all other names. How about you?

My prayer: Lord, there are so many ways I strive to build my personal identity here in life, but I see the psalmist was truly content in taking Your Name for their very own, identifying themselves as a son or daughter of You, the High King of the universe. I choose today to do likewise. I’m ever so thankful that You want that kind of my commitment with me. For Your name’s sake. Amen.

My questions to ponder: What might it look like in my life to stop striving for a personalized identity that is built only through my own will and strength? Can I choose, today, the road the psalmist chose, finding contentment in becoming one who has taken the name of the Lord for their very own?

So what is God speaking to you today as you ponder the Psalms?

Over a 50-week period, you and I will take a deeper look at The Psalms: God’s Songbook of Prayers. In order to keep all the blog sessions organized, we suggest you bookmark our Contemplating the Psalms home page for ease of use. Keep in mind that one of the best ways to explore the on-going applications of this blog series is to walk alongside a biblically-based, Christ-centered spiritual director who is familiar with how to make material like this part of your overall spiritual formation in God. Many of our directors in our Sustainable Faith-Heartland network are available to companion you in your journey with Jesus. Click here for more info.

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