An adventure?

God gave me a new name about seven months ago at a Wild At Heart Bootcamp (April 2006). If you haven't read Wild At Heart - the very thought of God giving you a "name" (other than the one you were given at birth) might not make much sense to you.

In a nutshell: There is a much bigger picture, a much bigger "adventure" if you will than the little one we see around us. God wants us to live towards that bigger picture, with His help, he wants us to start to see that adventure for what it is and to live it. Much of that bigger picture involves Spiritual Warfare and certainly that bigger picture is an adventure we can live. It's an adventure that God wants us to live in order to fulfill his desires for us for our life.

The name that God spoke to me seven months ago is "Defender of the Helpless, Father to the Fatherless". There is a lot of history and build up to God giving me that name...I'll detail that in another blog entry somewhere down the road. I had to blog what happened this morning, so I'll remember it clearly and hopefully capture the power of what happened.

I have been praying and listening intently to understand how God would want me to live out that name. I know it has to do with kids obviously. I really didn't know if it would be working with kids, adopting, fostering, working with discarded teens...ALL of those categories have a big place in my heart.

I'm on the way in to work this morning, my wife and I commute together every day about 50 minutes one way. We were running late and just caught the very end of the Allistair Begg radio broadcast. I start thumbing through a bunch of CD's I've got in the car looking for one on called "Fighting for the Hearts of Your Children". I couldn't find it, so I'm scrambling to find another one - meanwhile my wife is getting aggitated because I'm trying to drive and find the CD at the same time.

I relent...just as the Focus on the Family radio program starts. It is the second part of the testimony of a lady that was adopted by a missionary family in Korea. The testimony is incredible, and is just finishing up when I drop my wife off.

I head off to my office and the announcer comes on talking about the testimony and gives some stats about adoption and fostering, etc. He then moves on to talk about a resource about adoption and our heart's attitude toward it...the book is called "Fields of the Fatherless". The title hit me like a punch in the stomach, it really, really got my attention (remember part of my name is "Father to the Fatherless").

The announcer then continues a few more lines and then says something like "this is of such great need and concern because these children have no one to DEFEND them" (DEFENDER of the Helpless). Yeah...so is God calling me out or what? Ok...by this time I'm crying and praising God for reminding me in such a powerful way. I committed again and again, yes Lord - I will do it, just show me WHAT to do.

I come in to work and share it with a few close brothers on the phone, then I pop up my IM client and share it with a brother out in California (another Keith). He's freaking out because while I'm typing, he was on the phone with another guy who was sharing HIS heart about adoption and fostering.

Wow. I just can't begin to put this all into context...

"Lord God - I desperately want to DO what you ask of me. I want to know your will for me. I will do it - make it clear and I will do it. What is the adventure you have for me? Who does it involve? Where do I go? Who shall I DEFEND, who shall I FATHER?"