The power of a name

Years ago, I was invited to sing at a worship event. I had prepared myself, ready to lift my voice in praise, but when it was my turn, something stirred in me to share a passage I had read from a book called The Daniel’s Prayer for Parents. I spoke and elaborated on what George Sawyer mentions on pages 5-6 regarding our name (he titles) “What’s in a name”. I will say this was a turning point for me, especially given the personal circumstance I was facing with my oldest son and the “nickname” I had given him. I remember giving my oldest son a nickname and calling him that for five years. Everyone knew him by that name—until I read about the three Hebrew boys along with Daniel. I realized the name I had given him had an entirely different meaning elsewhere. I immediately stopped using it and told everyone to call him by his real name—Taylor. That was the moment I knew—your name means something to the One who created you and Satan wants to take that away. In addition, this was an eye opener for me because while I went on for years disregarding my name and purpose only God designed for me I realized years later (now) that I was pursuing a counterfeit name and led into a destiny that was never truly mine - As Sawyer puts it “influenced to pursue a substitute destiny”.

I had no idea that this passage would be the very thing to free me from my doubts and insecurities years later about using my own name. Mr. Sawyer states in pg 6 “In his assault on the young Israelites in Babylon, one of Satan’s first targets was their identity. In short order, their names were changed. Instead of names that spoke of their Hebrew heritage and purpose in God, they were given new Babylonian counterfeits. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah became Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego” (Daniel 1 6-7).

Daniel - God is my judge

Hananiah – God has favored or Jehovah is gracious

Mishael – Who is like God

Azariah – Jehovah is my help

Their names carried purpose, identity, and a connection to the God of Israel but in Babylon, their names were changed to strip them of that identity and force them into a culture that did not acknowledge God. Their counterfeit names made a mockery of God, worshipped demonic idols, or referred to a god worshipped. I can’t tell you how powerful that revelation was for me. As someone who has struggled with identity, this truth hit deep. The Babylonians wanted these young men to forget who they were, just as the enemy wants us to forget who God created us to be.

The Battle for Our Identity

The enemy has been after our identity since the beginning of time. He did it with Adam and Eve in the garden, questioning what God really said. He did it with Jesus in the wilderness, tempting Him to prove who He was. And he does it with us today—whispering lies, planting doubt, and trying to redefine who we are. Our identity in Christ is one of the most powerful things we have, and Satan knows it. If Satan can convince you otherwise he can then attempt to rob your future. That’s why he works so hard to distort, confuse, and strip us of it. He doesn’t care how it happens—whether through shame, rejection, fear, comparison, or failure—so long as we never come to the full revelation of who we are in Christ. It can take on many forms, each targeting a specific part of our identity:

• How we see ourselves

• How we believe God sees us

• What we pursue and build

• What we attach our worth to

• The names and labels we accept for ourselves

But the healing begins when we receive the revelation of how we were created and how the Lord sees us. Created in His Image Genesis 1:27 tells us, “So God created mankind in His own image, in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.” That means our identity is not rooted in what the world says about us but in what God has already spoken. We are created in His image—fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). He calls us chosen, redeemed, set apart, and deeply loved. He doesn’t define us by our past, our mistakes, or the names others have placed on us.

My Struggle with My Own Name

Don’t get me wrong—I love the name my mother gave me. It fits me perfectly, and its meaning is one I know myself to be. However, I struggled with identifying my name and attaching it to anything I did. Every business venture I started was rooted in the idea that it would succeed because my name wasn’t attached to it. While my friends call me “A” and some have called me “A-Town”, I used to feel validated and important by those cool nicknames - more so than by my actual name, Amanda. It was as if they gave me a different identity, allowing me to step into a cooler persona that felt separate from the real me. Now, my close friends still call me “A” and I love it but it no longer defines me the way I needed it to without others knowing that. God has stripped away the false identity I once clung to, revealing the true me-the one He created with the name He intentionally gave me. Perhaps these feelings stemmed from my past, from what I knew to be true about myself before Christ. Even though Jesus paid my debt in full, there was still uncertainty and fear lingering in the background. I poured money into ideas, chasing validation, when in reality, all I needed to do was be who the Lord created me to be.

The Enemy’s Tactic: Stripping Us of Our Identity.

Our identity—created in the Lord’s image—is something Satan desperately wants to strip us of. He does not want us to love, know, or fully walk in who we were created to be.

At 42, I now see the lie Satan told me—and the worst part is, I believed it.

• No one will listen.

• No one will hear you.

• No one will read.

• No one will attend.

• No one will applaud.

• No one will appreciate.

• No one will care, Amanda.

• God will NOT use you, but He’ll use the other name you give yourself.

• You can’t live up to the name you were given.

• People remember you, and your past goes nowhere.

Embracing Amanda

God has given each of us a name, magnificently created us and we must embrace it. If you’re struggling with your identity, tell God about it. He is the only One who truly knows you. This is just a piece of my testimony, and there is so much more I will share. But this? This was huge for me. Embracing Amanda—with all that came with it—is something I now cherish and love. This website is more than blogging, speaking, and sharing. It is a long time coming from the battles I faced and overcome when using my name and embracing my God given identity. To anyone out there struggling to embrace who you are, let me remind you: Your name has meaning. Your life has purpose. And nothing can change that.