Some thoughts on the Psalms

I've been slowly meandering my way through the book of Psalms recently.  It's a nice book to savor as one goes through it.  Kind of like cake.  Mmmmm.... cake.

But I digress.

This isn't the first time I've read through Psalms, won't be the last, but there is one thing that is new (to me any way) that stuck out at me at the beginning of my reading and now I'm seeing a pattern in almost every Psalm.  The importance of the name of God.

In Psalm 30:4, David refers to God's name as a memorial, a testament of all He has ever done (the foot note in my Logos App Bible notes God's statement of His name in Exodus 3:14, where He tells Moses His name).  In other words, God, when He said I Am, was declaring all the things He was (and is, and will be as God is not bound by the silly fourth dimension we call "time").  God was not just saying "Hi, my name is God, nice to meet you".  He was saying "Hi.  I Am.  I Am creator, savior, judge, ruler, peace, provider, protector.... etc.  I Am the one who will rescue you."  His name isn't just a word.  It is a descriptor; it tells us who He is.  It's kind of like the story of God.  It is more powerful than we can imagine.  I mean, God spoke.  And it was.  All of creation is God's Word come to life; and that act of creating is just part of His name.  

Which is kind of interesting to read through the Bible with that thought in mind and take note of the places where God's name is mentioned.  For example, Revelation 19:12 states that when Jesus returns, He will have a name that only He knows.  It makes me wonder what story that name might tell, what power that name holds that it isn't even spoken.  Could I even comprehend it?  Probably not.  I don't comprehend much...  Which got me wondering about another place in Revelation (2:17) where we are told that we will be given a new name, written on a stone, that only we will understand; probably because we are the only ones who fully understand our own story.

Today, I read Psalm 91 (I'm not making fast progress, but I like to mull over this book.  It's really worth reading each Psalm a few times over...).  Psalm 91 is one of my favorites; one that I quote when I'm frustrated, alone, bored, or just grumpy.  But today, I noticed that verse 14 (quoting God) states: "because he holds fast to me love, I will deliver him; I will protect him because he knows my name."  Think about what it means to know God's name.  To know His name is part of knowing Him, as much of Him as any of us can know.  Do I honestly, truly know God's name?  I can say that God is peace, but do I know His peace?  I can say God is good, but do I know His good?  Every day is a new venture into knowing God more and part of that means that His name becomes more clear to me the more I learn about Him.  1 Corinthians 13:12 states "for now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face.  Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known" (I'd like to take this moment to note that the original Greek uses "in a mirror through a riddle" instead of through a mirror dimly; I like the original imagery better... more poetic).  Here, we have just an echo, a faint reflection of what really is. Probably the best, clearest part of that reflection is God's name.

We can still hear it, you know, God's word at creation, part of His name.  Every sun rise.  Every breath of wind.  Every laugh.  Every flower.  It's all a whisper.  An echo of the Word from so long ago, breathing His name.

Gweli i chi
Amy