List one : Jim, Tom, Shirley, Scott, Deb, Don, Cathy, Dan, Dave, Jeff, John, Bob, Sue, Craig, Frank, Cindy, Roy, Anne, Ken, Gail, Lois, Sharon, Bill, Ron, Linda, Dick, Phil, Larry, Harry, Mark, Sharon, Tim, Ruth.
List two: Bryn, Kerrigan, Maleah, Kilry, Zion, Leyani, Soliz, Audrina, Jayla, Isaac, Aiden, Abigail, Nikki, Kyler, Arielle, Amelia, Jaslyn, Ashtyn, Brailynn, Maude, Rhya, Ian, Marcail, Corbynn, Blake, Anastasia, Bentley, Camden, Lathan.
Here's the answer. The first list are some of the names of my students when I first taught high school, 55 years ago. The second list are names of some of the kids who recently entered our Awana Grand Prix.
Oh how names have changed. Today it seems as though every parent desires to find a new name, invent a new name, or change the spelling of a name. Each child must have a unique name and certainly not an old name. And they will grow up with them and, unfortunately, many will deal with teachers or others mispronouncing them or not spelling them correctly.
Nobody enjoys having their name handled incorrectly, but it happens. My wife's name is Dianne and longtime friends still spell it Diane. She has dealt with that her entire life. Now she has grown to expect this, but I still wonder why even those who are close to her can't learn to spell it correctly. After all, it is her name and that is important.
But going back to the change in names today, this trend makes me glad that I have retired from teaching. I can't image having classes of 25-30 students with these novel names. I had enough problems remembering names when they were the old ones like Bill and Mary. Every semester I would face new students and face the challenge of remembering their names. In fact, the last few years of teaching I would take pictures of groups of my students and then use these to attempt to memorize their names. Usually after a few weeks I would finally be successful. But years later I have forgotten most of them.
I admit that I still have that problem today. I am often embarrassed when I can't remember the names of folks in church and in the community that I have met. And the older I get, the worse it becomes.
Now not everybody has the same problem with names that I have. When we used to be in charge of the children at Pinebrook, we would often have 70 -90 children for the week. The first morning my wife would use her vent dummy and interview each of the kids. By that evening she would know most of their names. By the closing on Friday I would be fortunate if I remembered 25% of them. And the following year I would need to start all over again.
But names are important. We all like to be recognized and called by our correct name. I am impressed when somebody that I don't see very often calls me by my correct name and remembers things, hopefully good things, about me.
But there is one who does know us by name and He knows all about us - our thoughts, our needs, and our future. And of course I am talking about that one who has the greatest name known unto man, Jesus. One of my favorite choruses encourages me as it shares that truth. Here are the words.
But going back to the change in names today, this trend makes me glad that I have retired from teaching. I can't image having classes of 25-30 students with these novel names. I had enough problems remembering names when they were the old ones like Bill and Mary. Every semester I would face new students and face the challenge of remembering their names. In fact, the last few years of teaching I would take pictures of groups of my students and then use these to attempt to memorize their names. Usually after a few weeks I would finally be successful. But years later I have forgotten most of them.
I admit that I still have that problem today. I am often embarrassed when I can't remember the names of folks in church and in the community that I have met. And the older I get, the worse it becomes.
Now not everybody has the same problem with names that I have. When we used to be in charge of the children at Pinebrook, we would often have 70 -90 children for the week. The first morning my wife would use her vent dummy and interview each of the kids. By that evening she would know most of their names. By the closing on Friday I would be fortunate if I remembered 25% of them. And the following year I would need to start all over again.
But names are important. We all like to be recognized and called by our correct name. I am impressed when somebody that I don't see very often calls me by my correct name and remembers things, hopefully good things, about me.
But there is one who does know us by name and He knows all about us - our thoughts, our needs, and our future. And of course I am talking about that one who has the greatest name known unto man, Jesus. One of my favorite choruses encourages me as it shares that truth. Here are the words.
I have a Maker, He formed my heart
Before even time began, My life was in his hands
He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And He hears me when I call
I have a Father, He calls me His own
He'll never leave me, No matter where I go
He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And He hears me when I call
Bridge
He knows me, He loves me, He wants me
He hears me when I call
He formed me, He sees me, never leaves me,
He hears me when I call
You can listen to it here. LISTEN
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