N is for Name

“What’s in a name?  That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”

When I was pregnant with our oldest daughter, we began pouring through baby books to find the best name for our child.  We wanted a name that we not only liked the sound of, but we also wanted a name that had significant meaning behind it.  And, as a teacher, it was important that the name did not immediately bring to my mind a child with whom I had had a negative experience - for even a child will create a ‘name for themselves.' After many hours of deliberation, we decided on a name. 

We chose Tiffany Noelle.  We liked the sound of the name, and most important to us, we liked what her name meant.  Tiffany comes from the Latin word epiphany which means the appearance of God, and Noelle is the French word for Christmas.  So, when we put it together her name means, “The appearance of God at Christmas.”  She was taught early on the meaning of her name so she would have the opportunity to make her life reflect the definition of her name, right from the start. 

And I think she has.  Even as a baby, she was patient and kind.  When I think of her as she is now, I think of someone who is sensible and calm – although I am well aware she can be quite loud and boisterous with her friends.  She is slow to anger and quick to help.  She is creative and a powerful story teller.  She is intelligent, but does not display her intelligence in a way that is arrogant or self-promoting.

Her collection of friends is probably what describes her as most Christ like.  It is quite an eclectic group.  She has friends that are cheerleaders and friends that are nerds.  She has some that are brainy, and some that barely made it through high school.  She has friends from all walks of life, Christian, and non-Christian, atheists and seminary students.  She has friends from all over the world – some she has met in person, and some she has only met on-line.  She can relate to all groups of people, much like Christ did while He was here.

She has a passionate heart for the broken – for those who have been deeply wounded, ostracized, and marginalized.  She sees people that others overlook and offers them her friendship and in the process leads them towards the healing power of a life redeemed in Christ. She will witness to anyone – at any time.  She is never afraid to share the gospel with people she meets.  She can offer both intellectual arguments for God’s plan of salvation – or relationally based ones, it does not matter - she will meet you wherever you are.

She is not one for small talk – she likes conversations that mean something, but lest you think she is a serious creature, she loves movies, anime and dressing-up in costumes for conventions.  She likes to play games, to laugh and is competitive.  She will climb any tree, scale any wall and is not afraid to get hurt in the process.  She knows the ER doc at all anime conventions personally, and most lines to the Disney princess movies.

To know her is to know that God appeared to us at Christmas to redeem all lost people.  This is what her life stands for.  Tiffany lives up to the definition of her name.   And while it’s nice to think she is a product of the definition of her name, that isn’t necessarily true.  Had we called her Abigail, or Theresa, she would still have a Christ-like character.  In our culture it isn’t your name that defines you – but you define your name. 

We define our names by our actions more so than the static pre-determined definition of our name.  We all have a reputation we create; an association that goes with our given name or, that goes with a name we have chosen to wear. 

When someone recalls our name, do they recall a Christ-like attitude, compassion, and love?  Do they think of someone who is strong, humble, selfless, or would they connect our name to mean someone who is bitter, gossipy, and haughty?

A name means something – and when we choose to call ourselves Christian, the question then becomes, are we living up to the meaning of our name?