We have 'parented' Cherinet and Shasho for years. From afar, they have called us Mom and Dad, they changed their names on Facebook to Coleman, we sent them things they needed, and money consistently to help meet their needs. Even more so, after we began the adoption process, they began to feel more like ours.
However, something shifted the moment the beautiful, young, Ethiopian judge signed our paperwork, declaring Cherinet and Shasho legally ours...the became Colemans. In Scripture, God often changed the names of those who followed Him. The name change wasn't simply to give another name, but to bestow upon that person a new identity, a new destiny, a new position. Abram became Abraham, Sarai became Sarah. Jacob became Israel and Saul became Paul. Their new names gave them a new inheritance...one of descendants and children, one of leadership and anointing and victory.
As human beings, we so often approach weakness and frailty by addressing it, labeling it, magnifying it. Our child or our spouse struggle in an area and we talk about it, we argue about it, we label them with it. What we magnify, always grows. Abram was a liar, Sarah a doubter, Jacob was a deceiver, and Saul, a murderer. God didn't focus on those things, however. Instead, He declared who these men truly were. Abraham, a father of many nations; Sarah, a mother in old age; Israel, an overcomer; and Paul, a man who evangelized the world and wrote much of the New Testament. When the new name and new identity was declared, the weakness fell to the background and the strength of their new character became prominent.
The past and rough start our two sons have had will not define who they are anymore. They have become Colemans. They have a new identity. They are a child of two parents, in a large family. They are now pastor's kids. They will be Americans. They have a new mantle, a new inheritance, a new identity. Something shifted in the heavens when that name was declared. It will take time and love and the Spirit of God to heal the wounds they carry, but we will continue to remind them, 'you belong to our family forever', 'nothing you will do can ever change that',' you have a new name, a new family, a new future'.
If only we could grab hold of that revelation as believers. When we surrender our lives to Christ, we become new creatures, we are sealed by the Holy Spirit, and God gives us a new name. We have a new inheritance in the Kingdom of God, we carry a new mantle, a new anointing, a new authority. We spin our wheels when we focus on what we're not....not pretty enough, not talented enough, not strong enough, not popular enough. Magnify who you are. You have become a believer. God has given you a new name...and that name is "Righteous". Wear your new identity like a garment. Walk in it. Your weaknesses will then fall away into the background and your strengths will magnify. Whats your new name?
We now can share our adoption video freely. Here it is. To God be all glory!
http://www.onetruemedia.com/shared?p=11c0dc57893db7b390c08f7&skin_id=1602&utm_source=otm&utm_medium=text_url
