“FOR HIS NAME SAKE “
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
for his name’s sake. Psalms 23:3
Psalm 23 is a well known psalm which everyone knows thoroughly. Yes I was also thinking Iike that till the time I was caught by the 3rd verse ‘He guides me in paths of righteousness for HIS NAME’S SAKE. These last 3 verses speak so much about the Lord.
My failure is His failure and is bad for God. So, He won’t let me fail , but, gives me the guarantee of success- not for my prayers or my name’s sake, but for His name’s sake, because His reputation is at stake. He has to make sure that I succeed in everything I do.
He has put His image on me and my life, my attitude, my success, my vision, my dream-everything protects the name of my God as the product protects the name of the company. A company can destroy its name by the failure of its product.
When David was distressed as his friends deserted him, he turns to the Lord and says ‘…. for the sake of ‘YOUR NAME’ lead me and guide me ‘ (Ps. 31:3).Again in Ps.109:21 ‘ O Sovereign Lord, deal well with me for ‘ YOUR NAME’SAKE ‘ and in many other times also he prays like this – because David knows his Lord. The Lord also in concerned about His name. He tells Moses about Pharaoh that He wants to show him His power and that ‘MY NAME ‘ might be proclaimed in all the earth.
Jeremiah also cries out ‘ Although our sins testify against us, O Lord, do something for the sake of ‘ YOUR NAME ‘. These servants of God knew that the Lord will do anything for His children because His reputation is at stake if He doesn’t help them and bring them out of trouble in times of crisis.
In the families too, the father tells the children ‘don’t spoil my name ‘. When the children do something wrong, whether the father likes or not, he rectifies it for his own name’s sake. One of our friends, when his son had pledged the property documents in the bank without his knowledge , had to redeem it by paying in crores because he did not want his ‘ name to be at stake’.
In the same way, even though we have made mistakes, have gone through disappointments, have missed good opportunities, stiff necked, murmur and complain, we are the children of the Most High God who redeems us and crowns us with favour for His name’s sake.
Prayer:
Father, thank you that whatever I am, whatever I do, you still see me as your child. Help to release All that is in me , the fullness of me for the glory of your name. Amen.
Sol.Amala Arunachalam