What's in a name?

I have always been interested in what names mean and I'm amazed at how parents can name their little baby before ever meeting them and then find that the name and its meaning suit them so well! Several years ago, I made these for the ladies in my Bible Study group at our last meeting. They were so well received, I've made lots more since then.

One lady in my group was named Linda. She did not know that her name meant, "beautiful". And, she shared with us that this was very meaningful to find out because she had recently been struggling with the fact that her mother had tried to abort her several times. Her mother probably did not know the meaning of the name - but it spoke to her in a healing way many, many years later. Isn't that neat? You just never know how God will use us when we take initiative in encouraging others.

To make this, cut out a piece of cardboard to the size you would like the finished sign to be. Take an old pair of jeans or other fabric and cover one side of the cardboard folding the edges over to the front side. Use hot glue or fabric glue to attach. Cut another piece of fabric exactly the same size as the cardboard piece and cut out a window in it to form the "frame". Hand-stitch the person's name and what it means onto the frame piece. Using a concordance, locate a verse using the meaning of the name and write it on a piece of paper that will fit inside the "frame". Glue the paper onto the cardboard (not the covered side). Cut two pieces of fabric scraps to make the hanger and glue one onto each of the top corners. Tie those two pieces together and create a bow to hang the sign. Now glue the "frame" piece onto the front of the cardboard so that the verse shows through.

You can look up the meaning of names on-line by simply doing a search - I usually check more than one site to verify that really is the meaning of the name. Here is an example of one I made for David:

David means Beloved
Deuteronomy 33:12, "Let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in Him, for He shields him all day long, and the one the Lord loves rests between His shoulders."