Day 9: What's in a name?

The fasten seatbelt sign beeped. I looked outside at the large moon, hanging bright over the dark sky. My best friend and I were headed to the East Coast and it was our last leg. So far, a very smooth flight. Then it hit. Almost as if our little plane had been placed inside a washing machine, we bounced up and down, lightning flashing through the cabin. Eyes wide with fear, we looked at each other and squeezed hands. 

Flying scares me. Even smooth flights. Which is crazy because I've flown internationally multiple times. I see flying as an end to a means- something I watch movies and take naps through until it's over. 

This was not a smooth flight. Our flight attendant buckled herself in and squealed at large drops. Not comforting. I squeezed my bestie's hand so hard I thought her fingers would forever be stuck together.

I closed my eyes. Leaned my head back. Squeezed my stomach muscles together to keep from dropping. I was petrified. And then I instinctually did something I did not completely understand. Up from the deep places in me, I whispered through gritted teeth the name of Jesus. 

That's all I knew how to say. My soul prompted what my mind didn't know it needed. Again I whispered,

Jesus. 

The flights was only 30 minutes long. We landed safely and smoothly. There was no dramatic rescue in the air or an intense spiritual awakening. There was, however, a realization of the power offered to me in the name of the One who bought me. My lips did not know what to ask for. My soul knew the key to freedom from fear: that there was power in the simple utterance of the name of Jesus. 

Do we do that? Do we say yes to the power available to us in Jesus by saying His name and claiming His freedom over fear?