What's in a name?

The astute among you would have noticed a change to my little online collection of thoughts. Last night, I sowed some money into this project, and now you can find me at my very own domain name, mysecondcuppa.com.

The money, I’d like to mention, comes from some of the inheritance from my Grandma Ruth. The bulk of it we used a few years ago to buy a new-to-us car (I imagine our increased safety on winter roads would have pleased her a great deal, as she was known to worry about her family!). But, on our shelves is part of a bigger, more important, and far-reaching inheritance. Somehow, I am the current steward of a couple of books my great-grandfather wrote, and his daughter (my Grandma) illustrated. They are simple, created to be a ministry tool for their missionary work in India, but their impact on me is great. And so, it’s a joy to imagine that she - by extension - is investing in my simple words, too. Thank you, Grandma.

The site name, mysecondcuppa, is of course a reference to the second cup of this season in my life. I wrote about that at the onset, if you’re interested.

If you were part of the first cup - the years before - you would recognize the nod to Simone’s Cuppa, our beloved coffee shop we took care of for four years before the season changed. Friendship, ministry - just life - is at its sweetest when it’s shared over a cuppa. And that’s true no matter which season you find yourself.

Names are significant: Businesses, places, and of course, people are never flippantly named. We carefully considered the name of our son, and are now doing the same for our unborn daughter. We consider their names their first gift. Since Adam and Eve, names have held meaning and purpose. Many of our names today have their meaning because they were thoughtfully defined by our Father. Names matter. And we give names to the things and people who matter.

One of the things I love about our redeeming Father, is He delights to name us, and to rename us. Consider Abram and Sarai and Saul. When our lives change - when we change - our names can, too. Or sometimes we step into a fuller, deeper understanding of the identity we were born with and can embrace our names as they are.

So, this little presence - this place to share my heart and thoughts - it matters. And now, it has its own name.

You already have yours, and I hope you will know more and more how much you matter, too.