What's In a Name?

We’ve all heard stories of people giving strange names to their children. Some of them are surely pure fiction. I’ve heard the story of the two children named “Orangejello” and “Lemonjello” (supposedly pronounced “o-RON-juh-lo” and “luh-MON-juh-lo”) many times, and, according to the reports, they have lived anywhere from Alabama to Michigan. Or the twins that were supposed to have been named “Male” and “Female” (pronounced “MAH-le and fe-MAH-le). And there are many other examples of these kinds of stories. Most, if not all of these are surely fictional.

But what about the true stories of unusual names. There is a professional football player whose mother believed when he was born that he would be without peer, so she named him Peerless. Florida Atlantic University gave a football scholarship to a young man named “Yourhighness Morgan” (plus I saw a couple of different places on the Internet where Yourhighness apparently has a brother named Handsome and a sister named Princess). Add to these the long list of odd names that some Hollywood celebrities have given to their children, such as: Bob Geldof, who named his children Fifi-Trixibelle, Peaches Honeyblossom, and Little Pixie; or Nicholas Cage, who named his son Kal-El (which is the name Superman was given when he was born on the planet Krypton); or actress Shannyn Sossamon, who named her child (I don’t know whether it was a boy or a girl, sorry), Audio Science. Let’s face it; there are lots of people in this world who have been stuck with unusual names. Don’t you just want to ask, “What were those parents thinking?”

Our culture doesn’t place as much significance on the meaning of names as some other cultures have done.The names we’re most familiar with have meanings, but how many people really care what those meanings are? For example, according to babynames.com, the name “Kevin” is of Irish origin and means, “Handsome, beautiful” (I kid you not), but I doubt my parents knew that when they named me. I would imagine most people choose names for their children mainly because they like the sound of the name.

Because of this, maybe our culture misses the significance of the name we wear as God’s people. The name “Christian” is far from an empty label. It indicates that we are both a follower of Christ and that we belong to Christ. I believe it was God who chose the name “Christian” and first gave it to the disciples in Antioch (Acts 11:26; see also Isaiah 62:2). Peter said it was a name worth suffering for (1 Peter 4:16). Someone noted one time from the letters of the name “CHRISTIAN” that without CHRIST, I Am Nothing. The name “Christian” honors our Lord and identifies us as belonging to Him. What kind of effect does your life have on the name you wear? Does it help the cause of Christ when people hear that you are a Christian? Let’s never forget the glorious nature of the name we wear. Let’s always remember to do it honor by the way we live.

Signed, "Handsome, beautiful" Beard. Uhhh...maybe not.