Nicknames

Greetings:

Acts 4:36 - "Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means Son of Encouragement)...."

Tradition has it that, in 1803, Nicholas Hugh Sinep, the mayor of New Iberia, Louisiana, officially decided to be known as "Nick" instead of Nicholas. His new "Nick-name" supposedly provided a label for the practice of shortening names or assigning names reflecting aspects of character-that is, nicknames.

Nicknames are nothing new, of course. They not only go back to 1803 but back 1,800 years-and more! One of the most well-known nicknames in Scripture is "Barnabas." Barnabas's real name was Joseph. He was a Jew, a Levite from the island of Cyprus, who became a believer in Jesus, perhaps at Pentecost (Acts 2). Because Joseph was known for his encouraging spirit, people began to call him Barnabas, or "son of encouragement" in Hebrew (Acts 4:36).

What kind of nickname do people use for you? If others were to assign you a nickname - what would it be? Friendly? Nosy? Tale-bearer? Helper? Christ-like?

Think about that today. How do you want people to think of you.

For Kingdom Education,
Doc