Celebrating THE NAME

I’m so grateful to be with my girl this weekend before her birthday on Monday (tomorrow).  One day isn’t enough to celebrate her — I need several days.  What a precious treasure she has been to me.

We already had a beautiful son who was 2-1/2, then it was almost time for our 2nd child to be born. Back in those days, most of us didn’t know …boy or girl… until they were born.

Even though I knew I would be thrilled with either (it was going to be Robert David if he had been a boy), I had a glimmer of hope that a little girl would be born to us.  I’ll never forget my husband exclaiming….”Sweetheart, you’ve got your girl!”   How grateful I was then, and how grateful I am today that God gave me her.

I’m remembering the anticipation we had for the day when she would be born.  Of all the names we thought about if we had a little girl…..we finally decided on Staci Michelle.  Staci means “resurrection life” and Michelle means “close to God”.  WOW!  God certainly guided us to that name, because she has been true to those definitions.  In so many ways, she brings resurrection life to just about everyone she encounters —  helping people experience a fresh new life from one of rejection, defeat, depression, darkness, pain, and indifference …..because she is so “close to God” and that closeness magnetically draws them closer to HIM.

I don’t tell you this to impress you, but to impress upon you how important it is to calculate, ponder, pray for and get God’s vision for your children, AND the name you give them.  He had that vision for His Son that gives us a perfect  example to follow.  Staci,  being born in December, draws my attention to Gabriel’s announcement to Mary in Luke 1:30 “And, behold, you will conceive in your womb, and bring forth a son, and you will call his name Jesus.”   I love that Isaiah 9:6 even gave definition to His name before He was born,  “And He will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

What we name our children shouldn’t be a mere conglomeration of letters that we put together as a convenient way to refer to them.  God proved that when He named His son Jesus —  that name that is ABOVE all other names, that descibes His personality and gives  interpretation of His character traits. He has lived up to His name and it gives us hope, life, and blessing.  Indeed,  names are important!   How awesome that His name is THE ONE like no other!