Tamin Derek: What is in a name?

Some may wonder why I call my site by the name of Tamin Derek. Tamin Derek is a Hebrew to English transliteration. The Hebrew is in the picture to the left. I came across this when I was preparing for a Bible study a few years ago. Derek is the way or a journey. Our walk with the Lord is a journey of sorts. I think of Enoch. He walked with God and then God "took him." We now that God took him because Enoch's faith had "Pleased" God.

Walking with God is an image that is carried through out the Old and New Testaments. We walk with God along the "way" and it pleases Him. There are so many ways to go now days. There are many ways to god according to our march toward tolerance and pluralism. We accept good and evil alike (as long as it does not offend). If it does offend then we put our foot down and say no more. Unfortunately the journey that most are on is about as stable as a rope bridge. Also there is no basis on which we can say what offends us is wrong. We have become god's of our own destinies.

Tamin is the key word in this respect. God's way is "perfect (Tamin)." The modern English use of perfect has skewed our understanding a bit. Since the industrial revolution the word perfect has emphasized without defect or extreme precision. Most mechanical things need to have very low tolerance for error if they are going to work and continue to work. The perfect way though carries more of a sense of integrity, wholeness, and completeness. I believe that these carry deeper spiritual significance when compared to the strictly mechanistic idea of precision. Also integrity, wholeness, and completeness tend to agree with the origin of the word perfection.

"The Way of Integrity" to me is the best description of a walk with God. Integrity occurs when what I believe matches up with what I say, which matches up with what I do. In other words what I believe (faith) is what I say (proclaim) is what I do (good works). God's way is a path in which all of these align perfectly.

You can study the way of integrity through studying God's Word (click on links to see the Bible verses). God places us on the way of integrity when we make Him our refuge and garment. The way of integrity requires diligence, and integrity of heart at home. The way of integrity involves fellowship with like minded followers of God. The way of integrity is happiness in following God's instruction. Righteousness of this way clears the path so as to remove stumbling. The way of integrity is a "delight" to our Lord. The way of integrity is narrow. Jesus is the way of integrity. The way of integrity involves traveling lightly in this life. The Devil desires to pervert the way of integrity. False teachers will abandon the way of integrity. The early church was called "the way." The way of integrity is a better way which is the way of God's Love.

Let me ask you are you on the perfect path, the way of integrity, the road of wholeness, and the narrow route of completeness? If not then why don't you take a few minutes to pray that God would show you His way. If you are on the way then are you doing so with diligence and integrity of heart. Guard the way and keep on it all the days of your life!