And her name shall be

Dearest daughter,

Perhaps more so than with your sister, when your daddy and I sat down to choose your name we felt a great weight of responsibility. We knew that for someone so special there was going to have to be a particularly significant meaning for your name. We wanted to find just the perfect name to encapsulate…or at least begin to encapsulate…who you are. We wanted it to be a name that reminded you and us of truth whenever we spoke it. And my dear, it of course needed to sound beautiful – to suit one so wonderfully created. All of those desires stacked together made for quite the challenging task.

I tried looking up names by meaning. Oh I found names with great meaning. But their pronunciation was either impossible to decipher, or they failed to, shall we say, roll off the tongue, or they were likely upon their telling to result in furrowed brows and a quick attempt to mask confusion. So I tried looking at pretty names, names that I just loved their sound. But one by one those were discarded, none having the significance I desired. There were two almost names that your daddy and I tossed around for a couple days. Good meaning, good sound…but I can’t explain it, I just knew they weren’t your name.

And then one day your mommy was surfing facebook. One of her oldest and dearest friends had happened to like a post for a jewelry company. And stamped right there on one of the bracelets was the name Amelia. Now that’s pretty, I thought, so I eagerly went on a hunt for the meaning. And quickly discovered that this just wasn’t going to suit you. But then I clicked on the little link below for “similar names” and scanned the list. There was one in particular that stood out to me. I clicked on it. Saw the meaning. And knew you were named. But I also quickly initiated a google search, as I know names can have different interpretations depending on their origin. We had found a couple possible names that upon further research were abandoned. The more I learned about this name, however, the more I realized how perfect it was for you. I immediately texted your daddy. And when he didn’t respond (goodness, shouldn’t the man respond instantly? it’s not like he has anything to do at work) I eagerly watched the clock as thirteen minutes slowly ticked by until I could call at his three o’clock break. Mommy wasn’t so patient when daddy picked up the phone. I think I quickly blurted out, “Did you see my text? Look at your texts. I think I found it.” Your daddy, being much less impulsive and much more level-headed than your mommy, responded the name was beautiful and that he would think it over. Mommy is not so patient, so as soon as he walked through the door that evening she bombarded him with, “It’s her name? Isn’t it? It’s perfect, right?” And your daddy agreed.

And so, my little one, your name shall be Arabella Grace. The first meaning I saw for Arabella was “yielding to prayer.” My sweet girl, you cannot fathom how many people are yielding to prayer on your and your mommy and daddy’s behalf. This past week we have heard from friends near and far who are constantly talking to Jesus about you. There are even people who haven’t talked to Jesus in a long time who are praying for you. Your little life is and will be saturated with prayer.

Arabella can also be interpreted as invocation to worship. Your daddy and I have no greater desire for your life than that it be for the glory of God and that it lead to his worship. My dear, this is the chief end to which we all live. And whether your breaths on this earth are few or many, we long for your life to reveal a bit of God’s glory.

Arabella can also mean loveable, or beautiful favor. But perhaps one of my favorite interpretations is the one I stumbled upon the evening of your name discovery. If I wasn’t absolutely certain we had found your name before, this sealed the deal. Coming from Latin, Arabella can be translated to mean beautiful altar. Sweet girl, you are teaching your mommy and daddy so much about surrender and trust and the releasing of things held near and dear to our hearts. You are and will remain one of the beautiful altars of our life stories.

As for your middle name, we knew early on that we wanted Grace to be a part of your name. On the very first day we saw you, immediately after those first pictures revealed some concerns, mommy got in the car and the song “Your Grace Finds Me” came on. In fact, as I ran errands that day I must have heard that song at least four times. It was the first song that came on in the wee hours of the morning when we drove over to Seattle to find out more about you. Your daddy and I have dubbed it your song around here. There has already been so much grace – undeserved favor – poured out on this journey. The bridge of this song says,  “so I’m breathing in your grace, and I’m breathing out your praise.” Arabella, we know very well that every breath you take will be the Lord’s grace, and we will praise Him for each one. And you’re helping us to realize that each breath we take as well is grace. And so while this has been a season of mourning, it has also been a season of praise. The other song that you’ve probably heard playing a lot lately is “Praise the Lord” by City Harmonic. This song once again reminds mommy and daddy that there is grace for today, so we can praise the Lord.

Lastly, my dear, you must realize that while Arabella Grace is your given name, because you are a Johnson, you will have many nicknames. Your daddy is famous for giving out nicknames, and you will by no means be exempt. He still enjoys calling you Poppy. However, my personal favorite the past few days has been Bella Grace. Because my dear, you are and will remain, my beautiful grace.

Love,

Mommy