What's in a Name?

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

The great William Shakespeare penned these words centuries ago, yet he brings up an interesting question: What is it that's so important about a name? Each of us has one. Many of us girls dream up the perfect first-middle name combinations for our yet-to-be-born children. I think names are so important to us because we have the desire to be different, to really show our uniqueness. It reminds us that we're not just another person living life. We're individuals with our own personalities, histories, dramas and passions.

So we've established that names are important, and that's part of the reason that I've taken so long to even start a blog. I've struggled over what to call it because I didn't even know what the blog would really be about. But it's finally come to me... I want this to be an intellectually and spiritually stimulating blog. I don't boast any claims to deep insight, but I know that others have impacted me with their musings and advice, so I'm hoping that what little knowledge I have will be helpful to someone.

"In the Dust of My Rabbi" epitomizes what I'm trying to do with my life. The name comes from an ancient Jewish proverb that states "Follow the rabbi, drink in his words, and be covered with the dust of his feet." This proverb originated from the fact that many disciples would follow their rabbi (teacher) so closely that they would literally be covered in the dust he brushed up as he walked, and it was considered a huge honor to be able to get this close to the rabbi. This is how I desire to be with my Rabbi, Jesus Christ. I want to be right behind him and be absolutely coated in his dust.

In order to do this I know I need to learn how to love the Lord with all my heart, soul, mind and strength (Mark 12:30). I have made some resolutions (thank you 2010) and I'm going to use this blog to keep me accountable. I want to spend consistent time in the Word and I'm planning on using the SOAP method (Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer) and sharing any cool observation I get with you guys. I want to be in prayer daily and if you have any prayer requests please send them my way. I want to get solid doctrinal roots, so as I learn some really interesting things at Baylor I would love to share my thoughts with you. It is my opinion that learning and growing in faith happens best in a community, so I hope you can learn some from me and I'm sure I will be learning from you as well. And together, I think we can all come to a point of being covered in the dust of our Rabbi.