"What's in a name?" is an old saying. Like many old things, it has a deep wisdom hidden inside it.

I first happened upon some information a few weeks ago that made me think about what my name means. I got to thinking about it because I ran accross some information on the internet that told me that my name in old Hebrew means "honoring God". I thought that was quite interesting. Am I really someone who honors God?

Then I began to wonder if my parents had thought of this when they were choosing my name. When I was born, did my mom take one look at me and say,"Yes, he definitely is someone who honors God in all he does. We should name him Tim." Is this how it happened?

Or perhaps I am taking the wrong approach? Maybe names are not meant to describe, but to instead inspire their owners? Perhaps my dad thought that I was weak in giving honor to the All-Mighty, and said to my mom, "You know, if we name him Tim, maybe he'll finally start to honor God like he should." What came first, the chicken or the egg...?

But besides all this skullduggery, I believe that there is an even deeper reasoning behind the practice of giving names to kids. And that is that parents want to fit in. And they want their kids to fit into the greater society. So they give names that are popular with other parents.

Hmm. I guess I feel a big weight off my shoulders. It sure can be tough being born and already being amiss in the eyes of the All-Mighty. After all, peer pressure is easier to deal with than mortal sin.