name

today a good friend of mine said something that stopped me in my tracks... it had the power to change me; to break me and put me back together again in a new way. today, he said:
"God wants to name you. He already has named you. Maybe we need to step back and listen."

there is a heaviness inside today as i am battling against attractions that would only lead to heartache, against the feeling i will always be alone, against the belief that i am unloved and unlovable. a few hours after hearing my friend's words, i found myself grocery shopping and becoming more and more uncomfortable with every step i took. i felt hot tears sting my eyes as i saw an old woman without any teeth and was overcome with the realization that she is so loved. i could feel life and love welling up within me as a kid stood behind me in the check out line and made small conversation with me. he is so loved.

i drove home without really noticing what was on the radio, put the groceries away and came face to face with the realization that i feel empty inside. another dear friend posed a question today as she asked "what are you asking alcohol to do for you?" last night, i prayed, talked to a couple of friends, and once alone, asked a cigarette to make me feel better about myself; to help me relax and think more clearly; to help me escape from the pain and the loneliness. all it gave me was a bad aftertaste in my mouth and a sore throat that's still lingering. it didn't make me feel loved. it didn't make me feel more ok with myself. it made me ashamed of the stench in my hair, the potential yellowing of my teeth, and the health issues i may be causing.

as i put away the soy milk and the bags of pasta, i started pondering on this thought of being named by God. i wondered what God would call me, how my name would sound in her/his voice. i immediately thought, God did not name me "lesbian," just as God did not name you "straight" or "heterosexual." i thought about the idea of gay identity and began to question if the reason people identify themselves by their sexuality is because the Church has already done it for them, and the lgbt individuals have just embraced it. what straight couple or individual has been identified by the church as "heterosexual" because of their love for someone of the opposite sex? who has been labeled because of their love?

last night, i met with a friend who is holding me accountable and sat across from her at a picnic table. i confessed my sins and temptations to her and told her how ashamed and guilty i feel. i told her i wonder if i am a fraud. i told her i wonder if i am unlovable. i was terrified by the intensity in her eyes as she met me with a love that could and did crush the walls around me. she extended grace and true friendship to me as she held me accountable. i knew at least in my head, that in her eyes... i am so loved.

i'm nervous i will be found out. some people do not and have not kept the secrets i have confided in them. nevertheless, come what may, i am ready to move forward. i must be. tonight, i felt a new energy, a new source, a new spring of love and life within me.

i silently prayed and then listened as i finished putting away the coffee creamer, and i asked to know my name. a well of emotion came to my throat as i realized i have always known my name... my name is love... and for those of you who know me, you know how literal this is... i also felt the heart of God say to me that furthermore, my name is loved. and i am her/his beloved.

God says to me, "c... be loved."

God says the same to you. God says the same to gay men with aids. God says the same to angry church people who yell at abortion clinics. God says the same to the girl who is walking in to the clinic. God says the same to the pastor with the pornography addiction. God says the same to the homeless lesbian teen who got kicked out of her home. God says the same to her family who cannot show love to their own daughter. God says be loved and that we are all so loved.

how different would we live if we lived out our names? what has God named you?
forgiven? remembered? seen? understood? reborn? loved? ..._________...?

what if we treated each other as God has named us? what if we treated each other as loved? remembered? forgiven? seen? understood? or reborn? or __________?

my name is love. i am loved. i am to love. and i am finding joy which i have not felt in ages.

a few months ago, i asked "dear God, do you love me?" while looking at a starry sky. yes. s/he loves me. more than i'll ever understand... when i realize it and when i think that love has failed.

my name is love.