What's in a name

He's 4 weeks old, and his name is Corinth Michael.

4 I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. 5 For in Him you have been enriched in every way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge— 6 God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. 7 Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. 8 He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Corinthians 1:4-9

He's wonderful and we are awe struck by the reality that he's really ours.  We are a family of five.

I'm sure in the months to come, I will explore the juxtaposition of joy and sorrow we've encountered in his arrival, maybe even the subtleties of embracing his adoption.  But for now, I'll address his name.

Corinth [kor-inth]
aka Corey
aka Bro
aka Guacamole Bebo

When my water broke just after midnight on June 2, he didn't have a name.  When I held him for the first time, he didn't have a name.  And when we prepared a message to the family announcing his birth, we stared at him, hoping maybe he would tell us his name.

Don't get me wrong, it's not like we didn't talk about it.  In fact, I had spent much of the first part of my pregnancy weighed down by the sense that his name must be profoundly significant.  Considering the story of how he came to us, I felt his name must somehow reflect the entirety of the miracle.  It was daunting.  I read into everything.  Names within Bible verses taunted me and I (frankly) dreaded that I'd have to name him Emmanuel, God with us.  (Note: there is nothing wrong with this name, but Manny Cannon?  Nope.)

Once I let go of this unreasonable pressure, we made a short list.  We agreed that he would share his middle name with his father (and its meaning with his sister). Michael - Who is like God?  A rhetorical question, not a statement.

One Sunday while in church, I received a text from Ryan up in the tech booth (yep, I checked my texts in church...eeps!).  "How about Corinth?"

It's a little out there, but Ryan always names our kids, (I don't know why.  I always have great suggestions.  But, in the end, Ryan always chooses) and he's always done a perfect job at it.

So he coffee-shop tested it....

Parents do this, right?  Well, we do.  It's a great way to see how others will react to the name, how they will spell it, how they will say it.  We didn't encounter so much as a raised eyebrow.  And the only misspelling was Corenth - not bad if you ask me.

...and I mulled it over, and over, and over.  And now he's here and perfect, and so is his name.

Like the church of his namesake, he is God's provision.  He confirms our testimony and proclaims it to the world.  He is the living result of our prayers.