He Got There First

[00:00:09] Well, hey, friends, welcome back to today's edition of the Weekday Podcast. If you've missed any of this week, I would encourage you go to weekdaypodcast.com and catch up on this week because it all goes together so, so well. Here's the thing about the names that the world hands you. They are loud. They are persistent. They have been doing this for a long, long time. But loud doesn't mean first. [00:00:28] Persistent does not mean true. Because before our culture ever had a chance to label you, before anybody in your life said anything that stuck, somebody else has already known your name. And this is what Daniel's story keeps coming back to. When Babylon handed Daniel a new name, he doesn't fall apart. He doesn't stage a protest. He takes the name. He had no choice, honestly. But something in him does not take the identity that came with it. And the reason is buried in his name, original name and what it meant Daniel meant God is my judge. That wasn't just a label that his parents liked. That was a declaration. God saying, I know this one. He's mine. Before Nebuchadnezzar ever showed up, before the soldiers ever came, before any of it ever happened, God had already spoken. They could rename him, but they could never re identify him. And that's the line I want you to hold on to today. Because there is a difference between a name that you wear and. And a name that actually defines you. And here's the same truth that's applied to you in Ephesians 1:4. It says that he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before him, before the foundation of the world, before the performance review, before the diagnosis, before the relationship fell apart, before you did the thing you can't stop thinking about, before any of the voices that you've been speaking into your life showed up. God has already named you. You chosen his known. Now, that's not inspirational content. That's not motivational poster that you put up somewhere. That's the God of the universe speaking directly about you. And he got there first. Now, I want to be honest with you for a second because this is where a lot of us get stuck. We hear something like that and we think, I know, I know God loves me. I've heard that. But there's a difference between knowing a truth and actually letting it do anything. [00:02:17] There's a difference between believing God named you and actually living like he did. [00:02:22] Most of us are far more influenced on a daily basis by the names the world has given us than by the name God spoke over us before we ever drew a breath. And the gap between what we believe on paper and what we live and practice, that's where Babylon does its best work. Daniel's anchor held because he had never really let go of it. Even in a foreign country, even with the foreign name, even surrounded by foreign voices, foreign food, and a foreign king who thought he owned everything, Daniel knew that one thing wasn't Nebuchadnezzar's to touch his identity. It belonged to God, and God got there first. So today, just let that settle somewhere. The loudest voice in your life isn't automatically the truest voice. And the name that has the most history with you isn't automatically the most accurate for you. Go back to the original one, the one spoken before any of the others. They could rename him, but they can never re identify him. Have a great day, Sam.