Word Associations: The Names of God

I don't spend enough time in meditation and Bible study - that is absolutely for certain. I finally got around to picking up Max Lucado's Grace for the Moment book and I'd like to see if I can come up with some "food for thought" for as many days as possible. I'll do this by reading the entry each morning and then going back to contemplate it throughout the day. I can't promise that these thoughts will be coherent or follow any logical sequence. But that's okay.

Today's devotional is about the various names that God has, the roles that He plays. Here is a little excerpt from Lucado's book:

"The shepherd who guides
The Lord who provides
The voice who provides peace in the storm,
The physician who heals the sick, and
The banner that guides the soldier"
- Grace for the Moment, Vol. 1, Max Lucado

I wanted to play a little word association with this piece. Nothing forced, just letting it mule in my head and seeing what came up. Here are a couple of the things that I ended up with.

"The shepherd who guides."

We could do some fun random thought tangents with these kinds of things. Here is how mine went:

"Shepherd" --> Psalm 23 (The Lord is my shepherd) --> Psalms!! --> Psalm 30 (my favorite psalm) --> "Weeping may endure for the night, but joy comes in the morning" (v. 5b)

Huh. Not really sure how to directly connect the guiding shepherd with Psalm 30:5, but it's a fun little tangent anyway. And I do love that verse.

"The physician who heals the sick."

To be honest, if we are trying to pull out Bible verses here, I am more likely to lean towards one of the ones that says "He comforts the grieving" or something like that. And I did some reflective thinking about why. It seems as though I'm more of an advocate for inner healing than external healing. I'd rather someone be at peace with their life than healthy. Now, I know that the two are often not mutually exclusive (how can you be at peace when you are in pain all the time?) but the counselor in me is still going to advocate for internal healing - and I can tell you from personal experience how often God gives that internal healing. The answer: ALL THE TIME.

"The banner that guides the soldier."

Hmm... this is something that I might have to do some more thinking about. There are some connections to be made.

I didn't used to relate to this line. I didn't now anyone overseas or in the army or anyone who knew anyone who was. But that has changed. My sister's long-time boy friend is currently in Iraq, and we're hoping to see him come home in February. And I have watched my sister go through all of the trials that any army "wife" goes through. It's definitely made the situation more real to me.

Once I made that connection to this line, I tried to think about a Bible verse. And you know what I came up with? You'll laugh. The first verse that came to mind was the one about the armor of the Lord. You know, with the sword or righteousness and stuff? Apparently, in my subconscious mind, the armor of God would not be complete without the banner of the Lord for us to rally at in the middle of the fight.