Names

I had an interesting thing happen today. I was sitting in my Bible class, and the teacher was talking about Joseph. She mentioned the names of his children and that he selected their names because of the meanings. Manasseh which means "God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household." Ephraim which means "God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction." The next verse she talked about was Jeremiah 1:5 - Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you. By Webster's definition, the word "consecrate" means "dedicated to a sacred purpose". The thing that I found amazing, was the name Elizabeth, my name, means "consecrated to God". I don't think that my parents chose my name because of the meaning as Joseph did, but it makes me smile anyway. It showed me that I need to be dedicated to God, but also if you look at that verse, God dedicated me to a certain purpose even before I was born! He knows everything He has planned for me. That statement then leads back to the other verse that is always in the forefront of my mind, Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not calamity, to give you a future and a hope. What an amazing God!