Last night as I was falling asleep I heard God whisper a word to me. It was this:
“You are my HEBRON”
Now, I know that Hebron is currently a fairly dangerous place in the West Bank, but that was pretty much all I knew.
I asked God what He meant by it and He told me to look it up in the morning. I went to sleep with the word swirling around in my mind.

I looked it up the minute my eyes opened today.

The name Hebron comes from the Hebrew ‘habar’ meaning to be joined, coupled or allied. Derivatives are ‘heber’ meaning company or association, and ‘haber’ which is an associate or companion.

So when God spoke that word to me what was He saying?

He was not just saying that we are allies and associates but that we are FRIENDS.
God calls me friend!

Now, before you think I am on some crazy arrogance trip, let me explain why I think God said this to me today.
The truth is, God has been taking me on a journey of real humility in the past two weeks. I have felt as though He was humbling me and showing me just how little I am and how much I need Him. He has shown me that all things come from Him, and that nothing I can give Him was mine in the first place.

Why was He humbling me? Perhaps I had grown a little arrogant? Perhaps I was feeling as though the next steps I was going to take were more about how He would develop me and my gifts rather than how He would use me to serve Him and others? I’m not sure. All I know is that I feel incredibly little right now… but not humiliated. I feel taken down a peg or two, but shown that those pegs weren’t going to hold my weight anyway…

When we first arrived in Manchester, I was asked to do a few things at church and in the local area. God told me it was right to turn them down and wait until after Christmas when He would show me what to take on.
In recent weeks I have been been really excited about the possibilities of serving God in Manchester and have been raring to go. I fired off a couple of emails declaring my readiness to serve in various ways.
But, interestingly and rather painfully, all the opportunities coming through have been to Jon and not to me!
He has been asked to do some amazing things and hang out with some amazing people. My inbox is, as Blackadder would say, ‘as empty as a hermits address book.’

I did get two emails saying ‘Thanks for offering to do this… but we no longer need you.”

Oh…

So where does this leave me?

Well, smaller I think. But I can’t help seeing God in that.

Do you see why God chose to call me His Hebron today? It was simply to remind me that He loves me very much. I know He has plans for me too. I just need to wait patiently for Him to align me with them.