Friday Devotional:
Luke 1:57-80
When I was in ninth grade I wanted to change my name to Carmen. That was my friend's name, and she was amazing: faithful at church, got straight A's in high school, and was our band's drum majorette, wearing a one-piece, gold lamé outfit that made boys faint. I was sure that if I had been named Carmen, my life would have been different.
What's the big deal about the name John in the story of the baptizer? His ministry would have been the same had he been named Zechariah Jr. The angel Gabriel had announced that "John" was to be the name for the boy tumbling in Elizabeth's womb. She insisted on it after he was born, and Zechariah's tongue was loosed when he agreed. You see, the Hebrew name Yohanan, the predecessor to the English name John, means "graced by God." My name may not have been key to how my life turned out, but John's name is important. It makes clear the significance of God's grace accompanying this child through conception, birth, and life in the wilderness.
Blessed be the Lord God of Isreal, who has looked favorably on us and redeemed us through Christ Jesus. Amen.
An excerpt from Christ in our Home
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