We moved to Texas when I was 13, and I wanted a name change.

I had been trying to get my friends and family to start calling me Nikki instead of Nicole. But being known as Nicole my whole life, the new name wasn’t sticking.

While I don’t recall the reason why I wanted this name-change, I do remember how unhappy I was moving to Texas and leaving everything I knew and loved behind. I figured if there was some positive element I could pick out of all this with a tweezer, it was going to be meeting people who never knew me as Nicole, and my name-change would finally be achieved.

In certain cultures, names are more than just a way to distinguish one person from another. It was also a representation of one’s character and identity.

My name, Nicole, means victory of the people. While I don’t regret going by my nickname, I wish I had worn my birth name with more esteem. Perhaps I would’ve lived out the meaning more successfully if identified myself as one who champions for others.

Instead, I have identified with other names I’ve given myself:

Defeated, Selfish, Alone, Forgotten, and, Inadequate.

More often than not, I am convinced these names belong to me.

Throughout the Bible, we see God changing names of those who follow Him: Abram to Abraham, Sarai to Sarah, Simon to Peter, Saul to Paul and many others. Their identity changed when they chose to live for Him.

How often do I have to be reminded that I no longer identify with those lousy names I gave myself. God, the Creator of all things, not only calls me by name; He calls me Beloved, Seen, Forgiven, Child, and, His.

No other name sounds as sweet.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

2 Corinthians 5:17