And He Shall Be Called David (???) . . . Read On to Find Out!

Many of you already know (or I guess the two of you who read my blog) that Elliot and I are expecting a new addition to our family. We found out a couple days before Thanksgiving that we were going to have another boy. Though we had hoped to write the results on a card and wait until Christmas day to open it, we caved about 5 minutes before our appointment and decided to find out.
Because we were originally leaning towards wanting a girl, we hadn't really thought of a name for a boy. After finding out, the thought occurred to me that the Lord already knows what this child's name is, and if I seek and wait, He will reveal to us what that name should be. Initially after thinking and praying through some first names, we discovered that we really felt the Lord was leading us to the name David. This was exciting in and of itself, but I wasn't sensing any direction for that pesky middle name, so on the search went. After talking and praying and researching some more, we kind of narrowed it down to three names: Asher, Isaiah, and Isaac. I was leaning more towards Asher, but I liked the sound and feel of the others, and ultimately still sought other names and some sense of leading and direction from the Lord. Well I am elated to share that He did that for us tonight!!!
It all started this morning at church, when our pastor did a message on how the magi sought out our Lord by paying attention to the prophesy and signs foretold in Scriptures. They did this specifically however, through the clues given about signs in the heavens. Without launching into a whole dissertation, today through research by using technology and some fundamental astronomical concepts, a researcher has been able to reveal the exact position and behavior of the stars during the time of Christ's conception and birth; all indicating His coming into the world, and even pinpointing dates of these events!. The website can be found here.
This kind of stuff is just fascinating to me, because I feel closer to God when tangible connections in science prove aspects of Scripture. So, tonight I went to the website and read through the whole thing. This same researcher also found significant astronomical occurences that coincided and gave further validation to the crucifixion of Christ, and again, without launching into a thesis, was able to pinpoint with confidence based upon Biblical information that Christ was crucified on April 3, 33 A. D. I understand the skepticism that this may be viewed with, and the website does a pretty thorough and convincing job in my opinion of corroborating their findings what Scripture says, but regardless of what some may say, finding this out really gripped my heart, and I do believe this information to be true.
So what the heck does all of this astronomy mumbo jumbo have anything to do with the birth of our son? Here's how. After finding this out, and being convinced of its truth, I immediately was reminded that our son is due to arrive on April 15, 2009. I felt very touched and honored really, that my son is set to come in the same month, and potentially the same day that Christ died and provided a way for us to be separated from Him no more. So, I felt God moving me that our son's middle name should have something to do with the sacrifice or salvation of the Lord. This excited me, because at last I finally felt that He had given me clear direction as to how we should find His name for our son. So, without further hesitation, I googled 'name meaning salvation of the Lord'. I was led to a website with a list of biblical baby names and their meanings. I began to scroll down the list and read. Some names had meanings that were kind of close, but not really encapsulating of the spirit of 'salvation of the Lord'. And then it happened. A chill shot through me as I read under the meanings column and saw 'salvation of the Lord'. As I look over at the name, would you guess what it was? Isaiah. Isaiah!! I typically tend to be somewhat skeptical of experiences that seem mystic or more coincidental than God-breathed, but I felt (and feel) that God had used this to directly reveal to Elliot and me that He desired for our son's middle name to be Isaiah.
Had you asked, I never thought that I would even consider Isaiah as a name for my son. I liked the sound of it, but it was very different from the direction I originally had in my mind. It just goes to show that seeking what God wants (even in this fun, little way) is always rewarding and life-giving. And you know what? I even feel a peace about it too.