"We hear a lot about identity theft when someone takes your wallet and pretends to be you and uses your credit cards. But the more serious identity theft is to get swallowed up in other people's definition of you." ~Stephen R. Covey

The letter came in the mail in late February with the return address of the Internal Revenue Service.  My first thought was that we were being audited.  If only . . . Instead, the letter was from the Fraud Division of the Treasury Department, and it was to inform us that someone had filed a fraudulent tax return for 2015 in our names.  Not only did the perpetrator have our names, but they also had our social security numbers.

Fortunately, the IRS caught the fraud.  They deleted the fraudulent return from their system, but our work had only begun.  We have had to go through a series of steps that began with our very own modern-day version of "To Tell the Truth," only the REAL Jeff and Tracy had to do much more than simply stand up.  The first step was verifying our identity online, answering a series of questions about ourselves that involved information about previous addresses and phone numbers.  We were even unsure about some of the information we were asked to verify - I mean, seriously - who remembers a phone number they had 20 years ago?  We apparently clicked something that was wrong, because we were informed that our identity could not be verified online, so we had to call a certain phone number.

If you've ever dealt with the IRS over a problem during the height of tax season, you know that making a connection with an actual person by phone is an exercise in patience.  But contact was finally made, and our identities were successfully verified.  That phone call was followed by another letter with more instructions.

You see, once this has happened to you, it is impossible to file your tax return online - it has to be mailed, along with a bunch of verifying information, including Identity Theft Affidavits.  Additionally, we were urged to file a complaint with the FTC, contact all three major credit bureaus to put a "fraud alert" on our accounts, and to closely monitor each one.  We even signed up with Lifelock to help prevent additional damage by the potential misuse of our personal information.

All of that takes time.  And ironically, in every single one of those steps, we have to PROVE that we are indeed who we say we are.  Sometimes that's not easy, and sometimes - all the time - it is annoyingly time consuming and frustrating.  But the time and expense are worth it - we've worked hard to develop good "credit names" over the course of our adult lives, and we want to protect those names at all costs!

The other day I ran across the quote by Stephen Covey that I used as the title for this post.  The thoughts expressed there, along with our recent identity theft problems, have made me think a lot about my name.  The writer of Ecclesiastes tells us that "a good name is better than precious ointment," and Proverbs 22:1 states, "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches."  Yes, names are important.  Just think of the public figures we know who have ruined their names - Jared Fogle and Bill Cosby immediately come to mind.  Both of those names have much different meanings than they did several years ago.

Tracy Stewart.  What does that name mean to those who hear it?  When anyone who knows me hears my name, it conjures up certain thoughts in their minds about who I am as they know me.  I hope those feelings that come with my name are positive and encouraging, but that may not always be so.  Perhaps I've hurt someone, or disappointed others, and that's what they associate with my name.  I hope not.  But if such is the case with you, I hope you will give me the opportunity to make that right.  Sometimes we can even have a negative feeling when we hear someone's name because of false information - we call that slander.  And that is as troubling and as unfortunate as identity theft - maybe even more so.  We all desire to have that "good name" spoken of in Scripture.

But the more important thought is what does God think when He hears my name?  That's really the only identity that truly matters.  With God, I never have to prove my identity - He knows me.  No one can impersonate me with Him.  And no one can slander my name - He knows the REAL me.  God told Jeremiah, "Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you..."  (Jer. 1:5), and the same is true of us all. Likewise, God told Moses in Exodus 33:12, "I know you by name," and in that beautiful analogy Jesus gives us in John 10 of Himself as the Good Shepherd and His followers as His sheep, He says that "He calls His own sheep by name..."  Yes, He knows my name.  And ultimately the only thing that matters is what God thinks.

Revelation 21:27 tells us that "only those whose names are written in the lamb's book of life" will be able to enter heaven.  I'm thankful that no one can steal my spiritual identity.  And I won't have to prove who I am - no "fraud alerts," or Identity Theft Affidavits or complaints will have to be filed.  May God help me to keep my name as one that always belongs to Him.