Mwende

Recently I was asked, and got to share the meaning of my Kamba name, Mwende. It's almost funny because I have it as part of my name on facebook, but no one really asks what it is or what it means. So talking about it again was almost something new. 

MWENDE means beloved...

I have never given much thought to the meaning of the word beloved, I mean plain and simple WE ARE JESUS' BELOVED, right? 

and that should be good enough, right? 

Yet somehow, the family I shared this with have now began to encourage me in my "belovedness" (definitely NOT a word). They remind me that Jesus loves me, that they love me, and that I truly am the Beloved.And I has gotten me thinking about what it really means to BE the Beloved.

We have many names for Jesus,
Jehovah
Prince of Peace
King of Kings
Lion of Judah
Lord
God
Heavenly Father
Abba Father
The Word
The Almighty, which is, and which was, and which is to come
(AND SO MANY MORE!)

Jesus refers to us as Beloved a few times in the bible, yet it in not in every version. In some instances his message is love and sometimes it may be telling us NOT to do something.  I think, that Beloved is definitely a term of endearment but way deeper then we can fathom. I think that we may underestimate the weight of what it means. Jesus could simply call us His Children and I think that term of ownership and family would be "enough". Yet over and over again He chooses to call us the Beloved, My Beloved, His Beloved. 
 Dictionary.com:

be·lov·ed

[bih-luhv-id, -luhvd] 

adjective

1.greatly loved; dear to the heart.

noun  
2.a person who is greatly loved.

simple enough, right?

 Yet somehow, reading it before the phrase "let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love" 1 John 4:7-8, it makes us feel a little closer to what love is. 

Being called the Beloved, truly, simply, wonderfully means that we are to BE-LOVED. Jesus has called us out of the darkness and into His marvelous to be engulfed in HIS PERFECT UNENDING DEEP UNCONDITIONAL LOVE. I think it's safe to say we will NEVER completely be able to comprehend Jesus' unconditional love, simply because as humans we are conditional people, and as Christians we try to not be. We are called the Beloved because of who HE is and because of HIS love. Through using this language Jesus is urging us onward to rest in HIS unconditional love without the worry of trying to understand it but rather to worship Him out of our "belovedness". 

When I was in Masii and I was first given this name, it was a little weird to have other people be calling me this. And then when I shared with this family and they sometimes remind me of this, it was odd at first and as I began to really search the heart of Jesus to see what this really meant, I was shocked and a little embarrassed that I didn't figure it out before. I can easily understand why I was given this name by Jesus, and by Esther (of Tumaini), I get it. I see that Jesus wanted me (and everyone who He calls the Beloved) that we are LOVED and we are to BE-LOVED by Him and through Him, we can learn to love those around us with unconditional love.

Jesus is very good to us. He sends us names and words that He knows that we need and He whispers to certain people to tell them to us because He knows that we need to hear that from them specifically.

Go today and simply and unconditionally love those around you because Jesus has given you the name and the power to do so.

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You Have Won Me by Bethel

Grace youve shown me grace 
Youve lifted my shame 
Drawn me with loving kindness 
Washed whiter than snow 
You have redeemed and made me whole 

Jesus you have won me
You have broken every chain 
With love and mercy 
 You have triumphed over death
And you are worthy 
Of glory and praise

Love youve shown me love 
By leaving your throne 
By bleeding and dying on a cross 
That wonderful cross 
That took all my guilt and sin away  

Shout it out and lift up one voice in worship
Sing it out until all the earth can hear it 
 Jesus is alive and He saves He rescues and saves (repeat)