A Name to Remember

Bible Reading: Genesis 17:1-8

“Can you pronounce your name for me, please?” the teacher asked.

Hania felt her cheeks burn. It was her first day at a new school, and it was hard enough being the new girl without having to constantly pronounce her name. “Um…” she stammered. “It’s Hon-ya Jack-yoo-bow-skee.”

“Thank you. Everyone, this is Hania. Please make her feel welcome today.”

When Hania came home that evening, her mom was in the kitchen preparing dinner. “How’s your new school?” Mom asked.

Hania sighed. “Fine. It’s just that everyone I met had to ask me to pronounce my name. I wish I had a normal name like everyone else.”

“I understand that,” Mom said. “But names are very special things. We shouldn’t change them lightly.”

“Special how?” Hania asked.

“Well,” her mom said, “did you know that in the Bible, God gave Abraham his name as a reminder?” Hania shook her head. “At first, his name was just Abram,” Mom told her. “But God promised him he would be the father of many nations. As a reminder of that promise, God changed Abram’s name to Abraham, which means ‘Father of a Multitude.’ Years later, even though Abraham and Sarah were old, they had a baby named Isaac. God fulfilled His promise to Abraham, and through Abraham’s line of descendants, He fulfilled another promise—when Jesus was born, He fulfilled God’s promise to send a Savior for the whole world.”

Mom smiled at Hania. “Your name is a reminder too. When your great-great-grandparents moved here from Poland, they didn’t have much money, they didn’t know much English, and they were very scared. But they were brave and hardworking, and they believed Jesus’s promise that He would always be with them. And do you know what your great-great-grandmother’s name was?”

“Hania?”

“Yep,” Mom said. “She was the first Hania Jakubowski. We named you after her as a reminder of where our family came from.”

Hania couldn’t imagine how scary it must have been to move to a new country. If her great-great-grandmother could do that, then she could at least get used to her new school—and she knew Jesus promised to be with her too. “Well,” she said. “Maybe Hania Jakubowski isn’t such a bad name after all.”

-Kristin Beaven

How About You?

Does your name have a special meaning? Maybe your parents named you after someone as a reminder of what that person meant to them. God gave some people in the Bible special names to remind them of His promises—promises that also apply to you! When you face difficult times, remember that Jesus knows you by name and promises to always be with you.

Today’s Key Verse:
Genesis 17:5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. (NKJV)

Today’s Key Thought:

Remember God’s promises