What’s in a Name?
What does your name mean? Do you know? Do you think about it often or only when weirdos like me ask you about it? My given name comes from the Hebrew and means “God is Gracious.” I think about this all the time, and am very thankful my parents gave me a name with that meaning. As I’ve mentioned before, on my post Sola Gratia, God’s grace is one of my favorite aspects of Him. I’m blessed to be reminded of this whenever I hear or see my name. In Bible times, your name meant a lot. Hebrew and later the early Christian families named their children with purpose. Isaac meant “laughter,” Nimrod meant “mighty hunter,” Danial meant “God is my judge,” Peter meant “stone,” Timothy meant “honoring God,” and Paul meant “small” or “humble.”
As I was thinking about names I thought about some names of God. My old youth group had a poster similar to this that I always thought was interesting. It has some names given to God in the Old Testament as well as where they are found and what they mean. My favorite has always been from when Moses was at the burning bush and asked who he should say had sent him. God’s response is “I Am That I Am.” I love how the Amplified Bible puts it: “I Am Who I Am and What I Am, and I Will Be What I Will Be.” God is unlike anything else we can imagine, though we may try to describe Him, we always fall short. He is also unchanging, as you can see from the AMP translation.
I used to have this poster in my room (it’s in my brother’s room now) and it lists names of Christ from both the Old Testament prophecies and New Testament passages along with the references.
Finally, in my thoughts on the subject of names, I thought about references to God’s name in general.
Philippians 2:10 “That in (at) thenameofJesus every knee should (must) bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,”
Psalm 8:1 “O Lord, our Lord, how excellent (majestic and glorious) is Your name in all the earth! You have set Your glory on [or above] the heavens.”
Ephesians 1:21 “Far aboveall rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named [above every title that can be conferred], not only in this age and in this world, but also in the age and the world which are to come.”
Philippians 2:9 “Therefore [because He stooped so low] God has highly exalted Him and has freely bestowed on Him the name that is above every name,”
Anyways, sorry this is late and a little random, but I promise I will be sharing some more of my thoughts from my devotions this summer. Thanks for reading!
~jojo
New Posts Coming Soon!!
Hello there!
I know it’s been forever, but I’ve had a lot of posts in process (about 5) I just haven’t finished them or they got too long. I hope to post one later tonight or possibly tomorrow called What’s in a Name? See you then!!
~jojo
New Devotions
Do you ever just have a bad day? Maybe you try to brush it off, and try again the next day. But what if that’s just as bad, even worse? and the day after that? Well, that’s been me this week. Only after missing my alarm this morning, struggling through the delivery of a speech, and trying to take a test while fighting physical pain did I remember what I had been skipping all week. My devotions.
Now I’m not saying that I was having trials because I missed my devotions and if I do my devotions I won’t have trials anymore. No, God allows trials in our lives so that we will grow. He guides us along the way with His Word. Because I had been neglecting reading my Bible, I had no ammo to combat the trials I faced, and instead allowed them to bog me down. I could see my attitude towards little things getting out of hand. As the semester finished, my classes are getting rough and just plain frustrating at times as teachers attempt to cram the last of the content before giving the final exam.
Today I started a new devotional booklet I received as a graduation present last year. It’s called Gospel Meditations for Prayer and the first reading is from Psalm 127. When I opened my Bible to read the verses, I instantly remembered highlighting them last year when I was facing a struggle of tiredness and the feeling of trying to do everything myself. This is basically the situation I’ve thrown myself into lately with allowing myself to be consumed with worry for deadlines approaching and my future.
” Except the LORD builds a house, they labor in vain who build it; except the LORD keeps the city, the watchman wakes but in vain.
It is vain for you to rise up early, to take rest late, to eat the bread of [anxious] toil – for He gives [blessings] to His beloved in sleep.”
Psalm 127:1-2
I have nothing and can’t do it myself! It is God who gives me the ability to face each day for His glory. Obviously not all of my problems are magically fixed, but I can stop worrying so much about them and trust God cos He’s got everything under control.
I’m gonna sneak a page from Christy’s blog today and list some blessings God has shown me today 🙂
1. God has everything under control.
2. A call from my dad that the company he works for wants me working for them again this summer, and at a possibly higher rate.
3. Technology that allows me to connect with other believers to glorify our God and share His blessings with each other!
~jojo
Liebster Award?
So Wednesday my friend Christy was nominated for a Liebster Award on her blog, Blessings in Waiting and in turn, she nominated some other small blogs, including yours truly. Here’s the deal:
The Liebster Award is awarded to bloggers with under 200 followers to try to promote their blog a little and also bring together a community of bloggers. The rules of the competition are as follows:
- The nominated user must provide a link bank to the person who nominated them.
- Provide 11 facts about yourself.
- Answer 11 questions set by the person who nominated you.
- Choose 11 more people and ask them 11 questions.
Now I don’t care either way if my blog is promoted and this isn’t something I’d normally do, but I thought it might be fun. I don’t know of 11 more people with small blogs so I’m afraid I’ll have to skip that one (sorry!)
11 facts about me!
- I adore reading! The library is awesome, smells like books, is quiet, and free!
- I love coffee, but mostly drink tea since neither of my parents like coffee and never had it in the house.
- I have always loved STAR WARS and used to use whiffle bats as lightsabers and play with my neighbors. I was pretty good too!
- I hat listening to flute music – even though that’s my main instrument!!
- I am the oldest of four.
- I taught myself piano and am currently teaching myself guitar with some clarinet and violin on the side. I want to learn cello or oboe.
- I read Ben Hur in 5th grade. For fun. (side note, I hate romance novels)
- I want to start a scholarship.
- I love British television and could possibly adore anyone with a Scottish or British accent.
- I wore a dead corsage to my senior banquet since I didn’t have a date. Yep… classy…
- Finally, I want to travel the world with Operation Renewed Hope as a Pharmacist!
11 questions to answer
1. If you could go anywhere in the world where would you go?
Definitely New Zealand!
2. If there was one thing that you wish you could change about your personality what would it be?
I wish I could have a more subdued or at least more consistent personality. I hate it when I’m quiet and suddenly burst out with something ludicrous.
3. Favorite animal?
That would have to be the tardigrade. If you don’t know what it is, you’re missing out.
4. If you could have lunch with anyone living or dead, real or fictional who would it be and why?
Ooh, tough one. Probably Elisabeth Bennet and/or Mr. Darcy for a fictional choice and Julie Andrews for real.
5. Why did you decide to start blogging?
I needed to get into the habit of writing consistently since I am a terrible writer and journaling just wasn’t doing it for me.
6. Cat person or Dog person?
Neither.
7. How did you come up the name for your blog?
Original title was “Don’t Mind Me” because I was afraid of all the scary people on the internet then it changed to “Random Ramblings” cos that’s pretty much what it is here 🙂
8. Tea or Coffee? Hot or Iced?
I love black coffee, but I regularly drink iced green tea throughout the year and hot Oolong tea in the winter.
9. What do you aspire to do or be in your life? Your biggest dream?
As a Christian my ultimate goal is to glorify Christ of course. But my biggest dream is really giving back.
10. What is your favorite book/author?
I really enjoyed the Inheritance series by Christopher Paolini but also love not a fan. by Kyle Idleman.
11. What is your favorite thing to do to waste/pass the time?
Pinterest or read a good book!
11 questions to ask
Now since I’m not able to tag anyone, this is open to all y’alls!! comment below please and thank-you!
- If you had a superpower, what would it be?
- Who has influenced you the most?
- What’s your favorite colour?
- How would others describe you?
- What are some of your aspirations?
- What makes you unique?
- Can you speak another language?
- What music do you like to listen to?
- What are you talented at?
- If you could give back to someone regardless of the constraints of time or money, who, what and why?
- What verse do you claim for your life right now?
Well that’s everything I guess. Have a great Friday!
~jojo
Encouraging Words
Hey guys!
Sorry I haven’t been one for posting lately. I feel like all I’ve done the past few weeks is reblog or post videos! Well I’m in the writing mood now!
Something I do a lot is post my thoughts on facebook or twitter from my devotions of the day, whether a song that comes to mind or a set of verses that have been encouraging or even a rebuke to me. If it’s a blessing or challenge in another persons life, awesome! However, I feel like most of it is me just wanting to share whats going on in my spiritual life since I’m not real great about actually bringing it up in conversations. I’ve never had a accountability partner or someone like that who you share what you’ve learned everyday with either, so maybe this is my way of doing that too. Some days my posts go unnoticed and other days they get a few likes or even some comments. And you know what? I’m okay with that! I’ve long come to terms with my reasons for sharing God’s Word with others. It should never be for my own glory, but rather to lift up and edify the saints (my fellow believers) and to further Christ’s kingdom by sharing the Gospel with the lost.
Unfortunately it is very easy for believers to do the right thing for the wrong reason. It’s so tempting to only do something for other’s to see us and praise us instead of being content with only God seeing what we do. Jesus addresses this in Matthew 6 just before he gives the Lord’s Prayer.
“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
Matthew 6:1-6
This topic was also addressed in a blog post on She Worships, and it really made me think about it. One of my favorite youtube channels is Blimey Cow and a lot of the times they use sarcasm and humor to point out the faults of the church. One video I remember dealt with feeling “good” and had one of the characters feeling bad so he posted something spiritual to make himself look good and also get compliments to boost his self-esteem. After watching this video I was scared to ever post anything again. If you have seen it, you may come away thinking the same thing too. But please, don’t be afraid to share the Bible with others!! God can use you to be a real blessing to someone! Just last week a friend posted to lyrics to a song and I read that and was blessed at the time but it was much later that this song had its impact on me. Yesterday was rough but I still had those words floating around in my head, “Bow the knee; Trust the heart of your Father when the answer goes beyond what you can see. Bow the knee; Lift your eyes toward heaven and believe the One who holds eternity. And when you don’t understand the purpose of His plan, In the presence of the King, bow the knee.” And to be honest, those words running through my head over and over really helped me get through my rotten day because they helped me focus on God instead of worrying or having a pity party. I guess I say all this to say, don’t be afraid to share what the Lord has laid on your heart with others, but be sure to examine your heart to see if your motive for sharing is right!
~jojo
Summer is On It’s Way! (178)
Ladies, I highly recommend this post! Written by a sweet friend who I know really practices what she preaches!!
Spring is here and summer will be coming in a hurry. Do you know what summer means? Summer means that the clothes are shorter, lower, and at times not even there. Fall is my favorite season for more reason than one. I enjoy the warm weather that summer brings, but I dread it for my brothers in Christ as well as young ladies that are trying to find cute new outfits.
Yep, you guessed it! This is going to be another post about modesty! I can almost see your eyes roll, but bear with me for a minute. I promise that I’m not going to ask you to wear a sheet down to your toes, with a parka and a fur hat in 90 degree heat to be modest. I’m also not going to ask you to wear some horrid combination between pants and a skirt. I’m not going to…
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Good Friday Reflections
This post may not be for the faint of heart: Consider yourselves warned!
No, it doesn’t contain gratuitous descriptions of torture, violence or executions designed to illicit guilt, but it does contain a challenge!
Why are so many Christians going around with long faces today? Are they remembering the tragic assassination of Abraham Lincoln which took place on Good Friday in 1865? Probably not. Is it because they are thinking about Jesus’ crucifixion, and lamenting not only his death, but their part in nailing Him to that cross?
It is a very human and loving response, when looking right at the crucifixion of Jesus, considering how terrible it was and how sad His passing, to feel sorrow and grief. It is a very human response even to feel a sense of shame and guilt in reflecting upon this scene.
I’m not quite sure that this natural human response is worthy…
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A Poem on Marriage.
I saw this on Pinterest today and though I’m not married nor even plan to be in the near future, I thought it was clever as well as poignant. So I thought I’d share 🙂
What’s Your Excuse?
Okay, so it’s a little old and cheesy, but it brings up a good point. Are you afraid to share Christ? Do you make excuses, are you afraid? Are you ashamed of the Gospel?
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” -Romans 1:16
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20
~jojo
Random Ramblings 