Last week we talked about Yahweh Roeh, The Lord is my shepherd. A shepherd is so much more than just a person who guides sheep. He protects, he leads, and he restores; he is the gatekeeper and the one who chases after the lost.
What does it mean to you that “he restores my soul”?
He brings back a person’s weariness to a state of wholeness.
I have to be honest, I am that person that is in a state of weariness. I was talking to Braxton last night and confessing that I haven’t even opened my Bible in about four days. I sat on the couch all day Friday and just sat. I got absolutely nothing done, and I have a LOT that needs to be done. I’m just spent. I know we all need days to stop and just be and not be so consumed with getting everything done. But I just feel weary here lately. I went fishing with my dad at the beginning of the week, and I needed it more than I realized. I had to make myself go because I had things that had to be done. School work had to be done. It got done, but it was late. But that time on the lake was peaceful, unrushed, refreshing, and it was restoring.
I think as moms we all have these expectations on us to get the kids where they need to be, handle the grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, job expectations, and social responsibilities; and keep the kids clean, fed, and alive, and at some point in there we have to find time for ourselves. And let’s be honest, we are really good at putting ourselves last on the list to the point that we don’t take time for ourselves. And we get tired, burned out, and weary.
This is when we turn to the shepherd, to our Roeh. He is the one who can lead us to that calm pool of water. Fun fact, sheep will not drink from a running body of water. It has to be calm. I think we need that calmness to be restored. In a day and time where everything is fast-paced and demanding, we need to take that moment to sit with the shepherd and just be.
The Lord is my shepherd; I am never in need. What does this mean to you?
With him I have everything. He will provide all my needs. Even in my darkest days, when there was more week than money, I never went hungry. I always had a roof over my head. And that’s just the physical needs. I was never alone, even on the days when I felt like I was. God had a way of leading me to the people who poured into me.
After a season of church hurt, God led us to where we are now, where this church restored me. Prayed for me and over me and allowed God to use them to bless me. That’s the power of my Roeh.
This week, we are studying The Name. Hashem. It means “The Name.” Much like the week where we studied the name Yahweh and I was curious how I was going to teach that his name is God, this week is even more challenging.
Have you ever had someone misuse your name or treat it casually?
Maybe your name was used in a mocking, taunting, or teasing way?
So what about this? Have you ever misused the name of God? Have you ever said “OMG,” or the full version, “oh my gouda”? Have you ever used God’s name when making a promise or swearing?
Exodus 20:7 says, “Never use the name of Yahweh, your Elohim, carelessly. Yahweh will make sure that anyone who carelessly uses his name will be punished.”
It is a common phrase these days, “oh my gouda,” it is said on kids’ shows, commercials, sports broadcasts, songs, radio, and out of the mouths of everyone around us, and hardly anyone thinks twice about it.
We have lost the reverence for the holy name of Yahweh. We treat his name as a common word. We toss it around as though it were the word “um.” It’s not significant. It’s a space filler, not revered as the one who fills all the spaces.
In biblical times, they were so afraid to even speak the name, YHWH, that they would refer to God as Adonai or as “the Name.” It kind of reminds me of Harry Potter and “the one who shall not be named.” God’s name is not to be spoken casually, used in falsehoods, as a swear word, or tossed about in a careless way.
He is to be revered, worshipped, honored, and feared.
We sing song after song that will say, “I know a name,” or “I worship a name,” or “His name is power,” or “His name is healing,” or “We praise your name,” but we never mention the name, but we know the name. And honestly, by the end of this year I hope we all will KNOW the name when we sing these songs because we took the time to learn THE NAME.
Our Key scripture this week is 1 Kings 8:28-29
“Nevertheless, my Yahweh Elohim, please pay attention to my prayer for mercy. Listen to my cry for help as I pray to you today. Night and day may your eyes be on this temple, the place about which you said, ‘My name will be there.’ Listen to me as I pray toward this place.
This was part of a prayer that Solomon prayed as he had gathered an assembly of Israel and placed the ark into the Temple.
Solomon is claiming God’s words by saying, “you said, ‘My name will be there.'” It’s not just His name, but God’s power. God’s glory. God will be there.
God’s name isn’t just his name; it’s who he is. When we approach his name as though it were a common everyday word, we aren’t treating him with reverence.
Leviticus 24:16 says,
“But those who curse Yahweh’s name must be put to death. The whole congregation must stone them to death. It makes no difference whether they are Israelites or foreigners. Whoever curses Ha-shem must die.”
How much different would our culture be if we still stoned people who cursed the name of Yahweh?
How many of us would still be at this table if people were stoned for saying OMG?
Hashem reminds us who God is. He is holy. He is set apart. There is no one like our God. No one. Yes, he wants us to be familiar with him; he wants us to know him, to walk with him, and to be in a relationship with him, but that relationship is one that, while we curl up next to him in comfort, we know that the one holding us is the one who spoke this world into existence. While we walk with Him hand in hand, we also know that the hand we hold is the same hand that holds the world in place.
We are to fear him. Not cower in fear, but a fear of knowing who he truly is. It is respect. It is honoring.
I love my dad. I adore my dad. He is my daddy, and I am his DLSH, “daddy’s little sweetheart.” Now he doesn’t call me that much these days, but that is a title he gave me when I was young, and I will always have that title with him. But I fear my dad. Ok, so the fear of being taken over his knee isn’t what it was when I was 7, but the fear is still there, the reverence is still there, and the honor for who he is is still there. He is my daddy that I can curl up next to, walk beside and hold hands with, and jump on a boat and go fishing with, but I hold that man in such high regard because he is who I “awe.” He is who I fear on earth.
God is the one who I walk beside. The one who I curl up next to and cry on his shoulder when this world gets too tough, the one who I call on when I don’t know what to do. But I fear him. I am in awe of Him. Of the world he created, the beauty in each day, the blessings he continually pours out on me and my family, the stories of him in scripture, and the expectation of living with him one day.
Hashem is to be praised, honored, adored, worshipped, and glorified.
We have already learned that Elohim created the world.
We have comfort in knowing that El Roi sees us.
We are encouraged because we know that EL Shaddai is our mountain.
We rest in the everlasting El Olam.
We know we have everything because Jehovah Jireh provides for us.
We breathe deep in knowing that Yahweh is our Lord.
We obey because Adonay is our Master.
We rest easy because we know that Yahweh Ropheka heals us.
We don’t worry about what is to come because Yahweh Nissi is our banner that goes before us.
We stay focused on him because he is Esh Oklah, El Kanna, a consuming fire and jealous God.
We are set apart because he is our Qedosh Yisrael, our holy one of Israel.
We are at peace because he is Yahweh Shalom.
We are surrounded by angel armies because he is Yahweh Tsebaoth, the Lord of Hosts.
We are steadfast because he is Yahweh Tsuri, our rock.
We do not wander because he is Yahweh Roeh, our shepherd.
We are all of these things, and he is all of these things because Hashem is the Name. The Name that we worship. The Name that we adore. The Name that we praise. The Name to which every knee will bow.
As you go into this week, I want you to think about Colossians 3:17. “Everything you say or do should be done in the name of the Lord Yeshua, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
How will you live differently this week if you do everything in The Name?
Have a great day with Jesus!
