What's In a Name? A Lot! by Tracy Krauss

I fully admit to a fascination with names and their meanings, so this month's theme has been a dream, both to write and to read! 

I think I've always loved investigating names. I recall scouring baby name books even at a young age. I must have passed this love on to my own children, for this book, which I acquired when I was a young woman, became a favourite with my kids. (The cover has been repaired more than once.)

When I was pregnant with my own children, I was very intentional about choosing their names. I wanted each one to have a Biblical name, a reference to our family heritage, and a good meaning. Also, I didn't want to choose something that was too popular. (I missed the boat on that one with my son. I thought Zachary was unique at the time - but it has seen an explosion in popularity... I did think I was very clever, however, because his initials also spell his name: ZAK.) 

In any case, to this day I keep a list within sight of my desk with all my children, their spouses, and grandchildren's names on it with their meanings. I use it to pray over them, that their positive characteristics would increase as they step into the destiny God has for them. It has been a great comfort for me at times. 

As for my own name, I admit to feeling disappointed the first time I learned about its meaning. Apparently, Tracy comes from Theresa which means "The Harvester". How boring, I thought! 

Now I choose to think of this in the Biblical sense. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Matthew 9: 37 - 38 (ESV) I count it a privilege to be among God's harvesters and believe that I can be used in this regard. Even though I have never been comfortable as an evangelist, I believe my writing is one way of reaching people for Christ. 

I also found that Tracy can mean 'Courageous defender" so, again, I like to think that part of my destiny is to defend the gospel. 

I am very proud of the fact that I was named after my paternal grandmother, but that feeling wasn't always the case. (My middle name is Lydia.) As a child, I was embarrassed because I thought it was so old-fashioned. I got over that by the time I was an adult and named my first daughter Lydia. In fact, something rather cool has happened, as you can see from the picture. 

My grandmother's name was Lydia. Her son, my father, was Fred. I named my daughter Lydia. And... she has named her son Fred. (She was born on my Dad's birthday, so they were always very close.) I also had an aunt Lydia and my middle name is Lydia, so as you can see, it is a strong family name. 

I could go on, waxing eloquent about the meanings of each of my children's names and why I chose them, but I won't do that to you. My daughters all seem to be following in my footsteps in that they have chosen very intentional names for each of their children. Suffice to say that there is more to a NAME than meets the eye. 

Tracy Krauss lives and writes in Tumbler Ridge, BC. She is currently serving as InScribe's president. For more visit her website: https://tracykrauss.com -fiction on the edge without crossing the line-

Spring Cleaning Prepares the Way by Brenda Leyland

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Would you be surprised to learn that God takes an active interest in your Spring cleaning rituals?

Spring cleaning, you ask? Of course, we know that our Heavenly Dad cares about all the details of our lives, but surely not how we clean out the corners of our winter-emerging homes?

Well, I believe He does care. Not only because He knows all that concerns us, but more widely, because everything we do, or don't do, impacts our destiny and, being as inter-connected as we are with one another, the destinies of others.

Each one of us has a greater calling and purpose, one that reaches past our temporal lives into future generations, into eternity. And whether or not we are able to take advantage of the God-given opportunities when they arise will partly depend on how prepared we are -- which includes how we keep our lives and homes in order.

We all know it takes a lot of time and effort to maintain our physical lives. We have our homes, yards, and vehicles, plus all our accumulated stuff. The more material possessions we have, the more time it takes to look after them. And, you've probably noticed, the more stuff that's piled up and out of order in our lives -- in the garage, in the basement, the office, barn, attic, and wherever else, the more effort is needed to maintain and find it when we're looking for something that's 'got to be around here somewhere'.

Which means that the more time we spend on these maintenance activities, the less time we have for our Father's Kingdom business, for writing, for instance. We all know time is at a premium. Our personal clocks are ticking, as is this old world's. We aren't eager to spend all our days consumed with only temporal activities, looking after that which will eventually end up on an ash heap.

Over the years, I have felt His gentle promptings to simplify my life more and more, to let go of those things in my life that take up space, time, effort, energy and emotion, yet give little value in return. More recently, I feel that prompting again, as He's encouraged me to keep on top of my homemaking activities. I'm to set my house in order, so that I will be in that place of readiness.

I don't want to be the caretaker of the wrong details. So, for me, that's what spring cleaning is all about. It's clearing out the junk, bringing order to my corners of chaos, and clearing the way for me to focus on the right details, those details that matter to the plans God has for me.

And in all this, I am ever mindful of the words Jesus spoke when He said that without Him we can do nothing. When it comes to clearing out my bookshelves, sorting out wardrobes, culling accumulated gadgets, tools and what-nots, I invite Him to be my Seer and Helper. After all, He sees and knows exactly what I'll need and enjoy in the future, and what truly is excess and clutter.

So, are you inspired to get to your Spring Cleaning? What if the opportunity you've waited for all your life arrives this summer? Will you be ready?

Brenda lives in Alberta with her husband and their sweet tortoiseshell cat, Miss Kitty. When Brenda's not watching for glimpses of heaven in unexpected places, she's probably writing about them on her blog It's A Beautiful Life.