Why God Isn't Your Buddy (And Why That's Actually Good News)

Have you ever had someone consistently mispronounce your name? Or worse, call you by the wrong name entirely while talking to you about things you know nothing about, convinced you're someone else? It's frustrating, right? There's something deeply personal about our names – they carry our history, our identity, and connect us to the people who gave them to us.

Recently, I heard a message that got me thinking about names in a whole new way, particularly when it comes to God's name. As someone navigating the complexities of career, marriage, and trying to figure out what I actually believe about faith, this perspective on reverence hit me differently than I expected.

Let me start with a simple exercise. Think about your full name – first, middle, and last. Who gave it to you? Does it carry family history or cultural significance? Maybe your middle name honors a grandparent, or your first name reflects your parents' hopes for who you'd become.

Names matter because they're not arbitrary labels – they're loaded with meaning, heritage, and relationship. When someone gets your name wrong repeatedly, it feels dismissive, like they don't value you enough to get this basic thing right.

This is exactly why the phrase "hallowed be your name" from the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:9) carries so much weight. When Jesus taught his followers to pray, he immediately addressed the holiness of God's name – not as an afterthought, but as foundational to how we approach the divine.

The Greek word used here is "hagios," which means separate, set apart, distinctly different. God isn't just another name on a long list of spiritual options. His name represents something – someone – fundamentally unique.

Consider this declaration from Isaiah 45:5-6: "I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God... so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting people may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other."

That's exclusivity in the strongest sense. While there might be dozens of people with your name, there's only one who holds the title that belongs to God alone.

But what exactly is God's name? When Moses encountered God at the burning bush, preparing for his mission to free the Israelites from Egypt, he had a practical concern: "When I go to your people, who do I say sent me?"

God's response was profound: "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you'" (Exodus 3:14).

This wasn't a new revelation to the Israelites – they already knew this name. It carried the weight of their history, their understanding of who God had proven himself to be through generations of relationship with their ancestors. When Moses said "I AM sent me," they knew exactly who he meant.

Think about it like this: my kids call me "Papa." If I sent a friend to deliver a message to them saying "Papa sent me," they'd know immediately who that meant – because no one else in their world holds that title. It's exclusive to our relationship.

Here's where it gets interesting for those of us trying to navigate modern faith. Last week, you might have heard about God as "Abba" – the intimate, daddy-like relationship we can have with our heavenly Father. This week, we're talking about his holiness and the reverence his name deserves.

Is this a contradiction? Not at all.

My children call me Papa, and our relationship is incredibly intimate and warm. But I'm also their father – which means I have access to resources, wisdom, and authority that they don't. When they're in real trouble, they come to me not just because I love them, but because I can actually help in ways they can't help themselves.

The same is true with God. Hebrews 4:14-16 captures this beautifully: "Since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."

We can approach confidently, but we're approaching a throne of grace. There's intimacy and reverence held in tension.

So what does this look like practically? It means God isn't our "buddy" or our "homeboy." Yes, we have intimate access to him through what Jesus accomplished, but we don't approach the Creator of the universe casually.

This goes back to one of the oldest commandments: "You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name" (Exodus 20:7).

But it's not just about avoiding certain words or phrases. It's about recognizing who we're talking to and talking about.

Here's something crucial: Psalm 9:10 tells us, "Those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you."

Notice the condition – "those who know your name." It's not enough to know about God; we need to know what he's actually like. Trust comes from experience and understanding of character.

So what is God's character like? Let me share three aspects that particularly resonate with where many of us are in life:

God is Patient 2 Peter 3:9 reminds us: "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

If you're someone still figuring out what you believe, take encouragement in this. God isn't tapping his foot impatiently while you work through your questions and doubts. He's holding back the end of the story to give you time to find him.

God is Faithful Philippians 4:19 promises: "And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus."

In a world where job security feels uncertain, relationships are complicated, and the future seems unpredictable, the faithfulness of God offers an anchor. He doesn't promise to make life easy, but he promises to provide what we truly need.

God is Kind (Not Just Nice) There's an important distinction here. Being nice means giving people whatever they want whenever they want it, regardless of whether it's good for them. Being kind means sometimes saying no when necessary and yes even when it's difficult.
Psalm 103:10-14 captures God's kindness perfectly: "He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust."

God knows we're human. He knows we're going to mess up, make poor decisions, and struggle with consistency. His kindness works with our humanity, not against it.

Given who God is and what his name represents, there's really only one appropriate response: reverence. This means giving God a unique place in our lives that his character demands.

This reverence shows up in three practical ways:
1. Believing God Exists This might seem obvious, but Hebrews 11:6 makes it clear: "Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."

Consider this thought experiment: You're hiking in the mountains and come across an intricate, valuable pocket watch lying on the trail. What's your first thought? Probably something like, "I wonder who made this? Who does it belong to? How did it get here?"
You wouldn't think, "I wonder how all these rare earth minerals randomly assembled themselves into this complex mechanism over millions of years." That would be absurd.
If we can recognize design and purpose in something as relatively simple as a pocket watch, how much more should we recognize the Designer behind the incredible complexity of the human body, the natural world, and the universe itself?

2. Staying Aware of God's Presence Joshua 1:9 promises: "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

God makes his presence known through everyday, mundane moments – not just in dramatic spiritual experiences. Whether you're stuck in traffic, dealing with a difficult coworker, or trying to fix something that's broken around the house, God is present in those ordinary moments too.

Jesus emphasized this in Matthew 28:20: "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

3. Obedience and Submission This is the hardest one for most of us. It's one thing to believe God exists and even to sense his presence. It's another thing entirely to let his truth actually change how we make decisions and live our lives.

If Jesus is truly Lord, that means his opinions about our choices actually matter – more than our own preferences, more than cultural pressures, more than what seems practical in the moment.

This doesn't mean becoming a mindless robot. It means recognizing that the One who created us and understands life at the deepest level might actually know better than we do about how life works best.

Deuteronomy 28:1 puts it this way: "If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth."

As you process this, consider these questions:

1. How do you currently think about and talk about God? Is there a casual familiarity that might be missing the reverence his name deserves?
2. What aspects of God's character – his patience, faithfulness, or kindness – do you most need to experience right now?
3. Where in your life are you sensing God's presence in ordinary, everyday moments?
4. What is one area where you know God has an opinion, but you've been resistant to letting his truth influence your decisions?
5. If you truly believed that God's name is holy and set apart, how might that change your prayer life or your conversations about faith?

Maybe as you've read this, something specific has come to mind – an area where you need to align your life more closely with God's truth, or perhaps a casual attitude toward God that needs adjusting.

Here are some practical next steps:

• Talk to another believer about what you're processing. Sometimes we need community to help us work through spiritual questions.
• Spend time in prayer – not just asking for things, but actually listening and developing that awareness of God's presence.
• Read the Bible to discover what God actually says about the areas where you're making decisions.
• Take one small step of obedience in an area where you already know what God wants you to do.

Here's what I find beautiful about all this: the more we understand God's holiness and treat his name with proper reverence, the more we actually experience his intimacy and love. It's not that reverence creates distance – it creates the proper framework for authentic relationship.

When we approach God with the respect his character deserves, we position ourselves to receive the father-heart he wants to share with us. When we honor his name as holy, we create space to experience his presence in our everyday lives.

This isn't about religious performance or trying to earn God's approval. It's about responding appropriately to who God has revealed himself to be – both transcendent and immanent, both holy and loving, both our Creator and our Abba.

As you continue navigating questions of faith, career decisions, and the complexities of adult life, remember that the God whose name is holy is also the God who is patient with your process, faithful in his promises, and kind in his dealings with you.

He knows you're dust. He remembers your frame. And he's holding space for you to discover just how real and present and trustworthy he actually is.