We've recently enjoyed announcing our new son to friends and family, and we received a few comments on the name. The following represent a few of the comments (all from different people):
"Oh . . .that's nice."
"-How do you spell that?
-A-L-E- . . .
-No, the first name.
-Uh, P-E-N-N"
"No, really what's his name??"
"A real plus thought--in about 18 years--a name like Penn might be worth a scholarship"
"[when we have children] the first will be named Messiah [College]."
These comments made us laugh but they also made us realize that we have to explain his name's meaning in order to share who we hope Penn will become.
Penn Alejandro represents the first two verses of Psalm 121:
"I lift up my eyes to the hills--where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth."
This Psalm has been woven through the fabric of Lauren's family for many generations. The words are lifted up as a prayer each time a family member is about to make a journey, or embark on a new adventure. As Lauren and I have begun our own family, we have increasingly realized the power and promise of these verses. The beauty of this Psalm became even more tangible when we visited Switzerland in 2007 for our "second honeymoon." During the week we were there, we we watched the sun set on the Swiss hills every night. The colors and vastness of the landscape made us feel like we were gazing at the hem of God's robe. The hills signified his presence nearby. You will never see more beautiful hills than those composing the landscape of Switzerland.
The name Penn means "lives by the hill". We love this name because it directly reflects what the psalmist is saying: when one looks to the hills, it is abundantly obvious that a powerful creator artistically painted the world in vivid detail. Similarly, we pray that by living his life within God's will, Penn will direct others' eyes to God, just as the hills of Switzerland swept our eyes to heaven.
The name Alejandro means "God is my helper". Combining these two names makes perfect sense because Alejandro represents the rest of the verse: "My help comes from the Lord . . ."
Furthermore, Alexander is Zach's middle name. By using this name, we hope that Zach, Lauren's intelligent and handsome brother, will be influenced to will us his millions once he becomes a millionaire.
But seriously we love the name. We love our new son. The name fits him perfectly.
Penn Alejandro, your mother and I and chose this name for you because we hope that you will grow into it: to become a man who lives by the hill of God's help: you will be strong because you receive your strength from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. As you begin your life journey we pray that your help will forever come from God.
7 comments:
Beautiful!!! I love his name! You got an "Wow, that's cool!" from us at the Lees house! He is so handsome and as Toby said, "He looks like a Salinas!"
Welcome handsome Penn. We love your name and we love you.
We LOVE the name! Penn was actually going to be Finlay's name, until we realized that Penn Manifold was just a mouthful of "m's" & "n's" given our last name. The meaning behind the name is beautiful. Gotta love people's funny comments about names. :) We get them all the time too! Hope you guys are settling in with 2 boys--doesn't get much more fun than that! ;)
PS- he's beautiful!
Ahhhh. Love it. Naming is huge, isn't it? s soon as we hear confirmation that mom and baby are well, that's what we want to know: What is his/her name? Dad and I love your hearts to plant vision and destiny in your beloved sons from the very beginning. You have heard God's own heart for Penn.
I love the name. Love it because it claims Christ's omnipotence and His unlimited power.
It is my prayer that Penn will carry on the Psalm 121 family tradition. That he will be a man who looks to the hills for guidance and strength. That Penn will be filled with unlimited opportunities to claim Christ as his God and King.
What a sweetie pie. Thank you so much for sharing in how you came up with Penn's name. It is so neat to see how God has inspired that name in him through you both. Love you guys and we can't wait to meet him.
Beautifully written!
Must admit, I was wondering about the name... Love the inspiration and the desire to root that sweet boy firmly in Christ. Praying those boys will grow to be oaks of righteousness, a display of God's glory!
Congrats on your family of FOUR!
All our Love,
the Mads
katy passed along your blog... i'm so glad for you guys - and wow, what a sweet face he is. all the best as you accommodate one another and flesh out being a family of four... for each one brings something unique and different to the "pot." loving you from afar, Kari (Taylor) Reid
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