When we first got into my first class Wednesday morning, I had my students sign in on the sheet and mark whether they had their work or not. One of my young ladies, who is personality plus, wanted to use a pen. She looked at the boy who was walking away with a pen, and she said to him, “Let me have the pen; don’t make me use your full name!” I couldn’t help but chuckle. I commented on it, and she said, “That is what a middle name is for, so that you can know when you are in trouble.” She was so right. My children knew they were really in trouble when we used their full names in addressing them. It is funny how little events like this get you to thinking and what applications of a funny line can come to mind.
Using one’s full name implies that you know the person well. Have you ever thought about the fact that we do not know most people’s full names? We know them, but not intimately enough to really know their full names. Maybe we need to take more time to get to know others so that, instead of being on a “first-name basis,” we can be on a “full-name basis.” When we come to know others, we can be a more positive influence on them, and we can offer rebuke when it is needed, but hopefully more often, we can offer words of genuine encouragement.
There are times that we need to have someone use our full names! I would say that most of the times that I heard my parents call me by my full name, I deserved what was coming, and even more than that, I needed what was coming. We all have times when we need to be called by our full names. There are times when we need to realize we are on the wrong track. What a blessing it is if we have someone who will “call us by our full names.” I wonder sometimes, as I reap the results of having taken a misstep in my life, if it is not as if I hear the voice of God (figuratively) calling, “Earl Dean Kelly, you stop this minute, and you pay attention to Me.” Maybe, sometimes, God is saying to me, “Don’t make Me use your full name!“
There is a day coming when we will be called by our full names, good or bad! When called by our full names, it is a recognition that a person knows who we truly are. We are being recognized as the unique individuals that we are. Each of us is special in our own right. Each of us is one of a kind. Further, each of us bears individual responsibility. One day I will stand before God, and my name will be called. At that moment, God will recognize me as the person I am, according “to the things done in my body.” God will look at me, and say either, “Earl Dean Kelly, come on home” or “Earl Dean Kelly, it is too late for you!” The choice is mine to make right now, right here. I am thankful for all of those who have cared enough to “call me by my full name” when I have needed it. So, thank you to my student for making me laugh and think. Now, she better have her papers ready, unless she wants me to call her by her full name!
