What’s in a name?

A name is so personal, and so unique to you.

Unique to you, even if it happens to be a more common name. Shout out to all the Jennifers, Jessicas, Sarahs, Amys, Marys…I may have slightly envied you when I was a kid. I can appreciate my name now, but as a kid, I could never, ever find my name on any of the cute personalized souvenirs and gift items. Having an unusual name as a school kid of the 80’s can have advantages and disadvantages. :-)

Now, back to your name. Your dearest friend’s name. Your mom’s or dad’s name. Your brother’s or sister’s name. The name of someone who hurt you. The name of someone you no longer have contact with. The name of someone you once loved or love right now.

Hearing a name can conjure up so many feelings.

To be called by your name can speak to your heart and equally shake you to your core.

When I think of the best role model of personally knowing someone by name, I think of Jesus calling the first few disciples. He could have chosen so many ways. He could have sent a written invitation or He could have just waved to them to come over.

Rather, I believe He chose one of the most personal ways. He chose to call them by speaking their given name. I can’t help but think that Jesus knew how much hearing their name would speak to each of the new disciples on a deeper level.

As a Freshman in college, I attended a service hosted on campus by a local church. I met the pastor's wife, Saralyn, on my first Sunday there. I remember vividly that even as we talked to each other in the foyer that first day, she called me by name. As a matter of fact, every time after that first meeting when she saw me at church, or on campus, she called me by name. As a Freshman on a campus with over 24,000 students, 500 miles from home, I was known to someone.

A year or so later, I walked into a service rather late. I stood at the back for a bit, waiting for the best time to quietly grab an empty seat. Soon, Saralyn was standing next to me. She leaned over to me, pointed at someone sitting several rows away, and then asked me, "do you know that person's name?" I told her their name, she thanked me, and she continued on.

I realized that day, that one huge way she served the University students in her care was to know them by name. So, that morning, what was happening is that she was going person by person, either remembering or learning their name. She was truly a shepherd of her flock of young students. She made sure that each one felt known.

Today, many years later, after the church service in a different city (a different country, actually), I made a quick trip to buy "emergency fika" for my very hungry girls. Lunch was quite some time away, and since my husband and I have a rule to “always feed the children”, I decided to take a little time to stand in the cafe line.

As I was making my way through the line, I saw Joakim, the pastor of the church, standing behind the cafe registers. He said hello, (using my name), and we briefly chatted. It could seem like such a small thing, but after being a small-ish church girl for quite some time, our family has now attended rather large congregations for the past 10 years or so. Understandably, pastors probably don’t know everyone when there are thousands in their congregation. That would be a huge task! But, I haven’t been in a situation of being known by the pastor of a church in a while, and this moment in the cafe line took me back to my college years, thinking of our University pastor's wife, Saralyn.

It also reminded me of one of my favorite verses in the Gospel of John, chapter 10, verse 3:

“He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”

A name.

It is a small thing, yet speaks to the heart.

Often in conversations, people have told me that they aren't good with remembering names. It's true, there are times we forget. But, there are also ways we can work to remember someone's name. Whether that is making a note of it, using other memory games to remember, or simply admitting you don’t remember and asking them to tell you again. After learning their name, spend some time talking with them - I promise it helps with remembering!

In a day and age when so many people feel nameless and, perhaps, somewhat invisible:

Ask a person their name.

Use it when you see them and talk to them.

This simple act just might change the world.