What Does Your Name Mean?

The pastor talked this morning about the many names of Christ, and how it used to be that babies were given names that represented them, or that the parents hoped they would grow into. The meaning of my name is "warrior; defender of men." This made me laugh because my mother was forever lamenting over my tendency to take up for the underdog. I wonder how many times I heard, "This isn't your battle. Let them take care of it themselves!" But I could never do it. An injustice, whether my own or someone else's, always cuts right to the bone. Apparently, I lived up to my name.

I've been chatting this week with a dear, sweet friend who is going through a horrible time. Pregnant with her second child, she and her husband were told that the little girl inside her belly had been diagosed with a fatal neural birth defect called anencephaly, a cephalic disorder that results from a neural tube defect that occurs when the cephalic (head) end of the neural tube fails to close, usually between the 23rd and 26th day of pregnancy, resulting in the absence of a major portion of the brain, skull, and scalp.

I've had several miscarriages, but many years ago I carried a child to almost six months before losing her. We'd already given her a name (Brianne, meaning high and noble); we'd purchased some furniture and laid out a plan for the nursery. Talking to my friend took me straight back to those days, brought the pain right to the surface, pushing back the restraints of time. And then I realized how much more difficult it must be for my friend to carry the child to full term, deliver her, and barely get to know her before having to say good-bye. My heart ached.

This morning, after hearing the message about the meaning of names, I looked up my friend's name. Maegan. It means "pearl." How apt is that to describe Maegan. On Wikipedia, it states that "the pearl has become a metaphor for something very rare, fine, admirable, and valuable." This describes my friend perfectly.

Maegan writes: "Jeremy & I haven't been able to help but have several 'proud parent moments' due to the impact that baby Ella has had in so many lives during her short moments of life than we have had in my entire lifetime. Our hope, born of suffering has produced more perseverance than we ever thought possible. So my prayer over the past week has and will continue to be, Father, please continue to bring me along so that I can rejoice in my sufferings because I know that suffering produces perseverance and perseverance, hope (Romans 5:3). You are the Creator and Sustainer of all things. Please transform my thorn into a flower. Bring sunshine after the rain..."

Losing a child is heart-wrenching. It's one of those things that no one else can fully understand if they haven't experienced it. But to lose a baby to a thief like anencephaly ... to carry her to full term and still not go home with her in your arms ... to know that another child -- sweet Emmalyn, still a baby herself -- needs you to keep it together ... and to somehow manage to grab hold of your faith in God through it ... Now, that's a miracle.

I hope you will take the time to visit Maegan's blog to read about the journey she and Jeremy have traveled this year. It's my belief that you will marvel at the backbone of their faith ... and I know that you will be inspired, as I am.

"As physical healing slowly comes," Maegan writes, "I am realizing that emotional healing will take so much more time than I had prepared myself for. "Pick me up off the floor" moments are numerous and as I trust not in the merit of my own strength, I am being awakened more each day to the realization of how much I need Him... how much I need hope."

My prayer today is that the power of Jesus Christ will make manifest the hope that Maegan and Jeremy so desperately seek, that His love will fuse their hearts back together, and that His grace will carry them through to the other side of this dark valley. Join me in praying for them, won't you?