Renowned /rəˈnound/
adjective
known or talked about by many people; famous.
There can be so much pressure in naming a child. Do you want to have a traditional name or a unique name? Do you want to name your child after someone famous, historical, or continue a family name? Do you want to have an easy spelling or make one up? What about nicknames and initials? Does the first, middle, and last name sound good and flow both written out on paper and spoken aloud? Will the name you picked cause your child to get made fun of by other kids? Is the name you liked forever ruined because of a bad experience with someone else who has that same name? And the list goes on.
Some people announce the name of their child before the child is born. Other people wait and announce the name after the child is born. No matter when the name is revealed, people will have an opinion about it. Everything from, “what a cute name” to “that poor child” comes out of people’s mouths.
I love names! I have always enjoyed looking up the meaning of names and reading the top names of each year. It’s so fascinating to me to know why people select the name they do. I always thought naming my children would be relatively easy one day, but when it came time to make it official it was so difficult.
When I was little, I used to love the story of Gideon in the Bible (Judges 6-8). I would run around the house shouting, “For the Lord and for Gideon!” which is the battlecry the men in Gideon’s army said as they went on to defeat the Midianites. (Quick backstory: The Isrealites were being oppressed by the Midianites. Gideon was hiding out when an angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.” Gideon didn’t see himself as a mighty warrior, in fact, he basically told the angel he had the wrong guy. It took some convincing, but finally Gideon obeyed God and led a portion of the Isrealite army to defeat the Midianaites whom the Lord had promised to deliver into their hands.)
When I found out I was having a boy, I created a list of names I liked. Gideon was on that list along with a few others. I had different combinations of first names and middle names and would say them aloud to myself as I would get ready for work in the morning. I looked up the meanings of the names I liked and kept coming back to Gideon. I liked that it was a strong name with a big meaning behind it. I also felt like it was in the sweet spot of not too common and not too unique. As much as I loved the name, I also felt oddly paranoid that other people wouldn’t like it. I didn’t tell anyone the names I was thinking about and decided to not make any official decisions about the baby’s name until he was born.
About two weeks before Gideon was born, I was in the car early one morning and a sermon was playing in the background on the radio. It was about Gideon. I only caught the tail end of the sermon, but what was said inspired me. Gideon didn’t come from the perfect family. He was in an oppressive situation and felt afraid and inadequate. However, Gideon was chosen by God. Once he embraced his God-given identity, he went on to do amazing things including freeing the Isrealities from oppression. I knew right then and there that I would name him Gideon.
A few hours after Gideon was born, a nurse came in and asked me if I was ready to fill out the information for his birth certificate. This was the moment I was dreading. I had spent weeks in counseling talking through what I should do when this moment came. We focused on two boxes on that form: 1. child’s middle name and 2. father’s name. I wanted to give Gideon a longstanding family name for his middle name, but I wasn’t sure how that would be received. I knew giving him that middle name could cause anger and grief, but it was important to me that he have that name. I knew what I decided to put in the box for his father’s name would change the course of our lives because a birth certificate is a legal form. Ultimately, I made my decision and completed the form. I didn’t ask for permission or forgiveness. It didn’t make everyone happy, but I felt at peace.
Five days after Gideon was born, Pastor Mark Batterson from National Community Church (the church I attended when I lived in DC) began a new sermon series called Naming + Healing + Sending. The sermon that day was titled “Game On” and it was about Gideon. As I listened to his message, I felt like it was a sign from God reminding me that He had a plan for my Gideon and none of our story was a surprise to Him. (Minute 25:18 is where the part about Gideon starts, but the whole thing is good, so take a listen.)
A couple months later, I was listening to the Autumn Miles Show episode 212: What is in You that You Can’t See and she started talking about Gideon. She was talking about how brave he was and how God created Gideon specifically for that plan. It was comforting to have the reminder again that God had a purpose and uses even the most unlikely of people to accomplish His will. That podcast aired at a time when I was going through an extremely difficult time and I wasn’t sure I had the courage to do what I needed to do.
On my first Mother’s Day it happened again – the sermon was about Gideon. Tatumn Norman from Citizens Church preached a sermon titled Mother’s Day Edition. She focused on how God calls us to stand up even in the face of adversity. It was another great reminder on a day where I was feeling so inadequate and I had so much grief about our situation. (Minute 18:55 is where she starts talking about Gideon, but the whole message was fantastic!)
I love the summary of the “Game On” sermon. “One of our sacred responsibilities, one of our prophetic privileges is NAMING RIGHTS. When God wants to catalyze change, He starts with names. There is power in naming things. It has the power to alter identities, the power of altering destinies. When God puts His name on us, it’s game on!”
Having Gideon was one of the most amazing things to ever happen to me. It changed the trajectory of my life. My prayer is that Gideon would have courage, integrity, and strong faith like his renowned namesake. Each time I need a reminder about how God uses imperfect people in imperfect situations, I think back to stories like this and I’m encouraged that He will do it again.
Love,
Redeemed Mama
So they shall put my name on them, and I will bless them. - Numbers 6:27