The Burdens or Blessings of Names
In Dallas last month, an Irish business partner, ten years or so my junior, pulled me aside over coffee. He wanted to tell me about the derivation of my surname. With another standing nearby, he said, "Gillis is a name that was popular in Scotland and Ireland. Do you know what Gillis means in old Irish tongue," by which I suppose he meant Gaelic.
Before I could reply, he took the long approach to make a short point:
"It means 'son of' -- Gil stand for 'son of' -- and McGil- as a prefix would be 'son of son of.'"Yes, he took that detour . . . and then he said,
"Your name -- Gil-lis -- means 'son of Christ.'"
"It is a special name," he concluded.
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On top of this, my father and mother named me "Timothy," which in most name books seems to mean "honoring God."
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Honestly, viewed one way, the weight of these names could be an unbearable burden, for I cannot live up to either name well. My failures are significant. I honor God so inconsistently, and I often dishonor him. I do not deserve to wear any "son of Christ" name.
Viewed another way, though, this name -- the one with which I was given from birth -- is a name that all of us receive the grace to wear because we are loved so much by God. It isn't that we are his sons and daughters because of how perfect we are; it is that we are his sons and daughters because of how loved we are. It isn't because we love him so much, but because he loves us so much.
He initiates. We respond.
He lets us grow. Growth is neither easy, nor a straight line. Adversity and failure are ingredients of growth.
He knows our frail frame. He knows he made us from dust.
That's why -- when we finally "get it" -- we realize the wonder that "his yoke is [actually], and his burden is [actually], light." We ourselves are the ones who wallow in shame. He never shames us.
I am a 'son of Christ' because he loves me, not because I'm good.
I 'honor God' because he loves me, not because I'm perfect.
Names are not meant to be a burden. They are meant to be a blessing.
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Connected to the past in ways I do not understand, I live in the present joy of the moment given to me, and I await the future I cannot see.
amdg