# Chateau de la Tobler

## Saturday, December 23, 2006

### Naming Gideon

Naming kids is a traumatic affair for me and Keryn. We put a lot of thought into the process because we believe your name gets to shape a little part of who you are. Keryn and I both liked Ezra Taft Benson as a prophet of our childhood and we know that Ezra was a good Old Testament prophet too who tried to bring Israel back to the true worship of Jehovah. While waiting in the labor and delivery room, just prior to his birth, we settled on giving the name to our first son.
When we found out we were having a girl, we tossed around a lot of names. She ended up being born on Good Friday, the Friday before Easter. That is the traditional date of the crucifixion, the culmination of the ultimate act of mercy ever performed. Since we also like the different Mercys in church history, we were able to settle on the name of Mercy for our little girl, though we didn't really get there until 12 or 18 hours after she was born. The date of her birth really had a lot to do with the final selection of that name.
Naming Gideon was a different experience. We bounced through several names that we liked and Gideon just sort of rose to the top of the list. Shortly before he was born, one of the nurses asked us what we would name him. We looked at each other, and then answered that we would name him Gideon Michael Ross. Of course, the Michael is to honor Keryn's father who passed away earlier this year.
It wasn't until later, while talking to a social worker in Primary Children's, that the appropriateness of the name Gideon really struck me. She asked what his name was. I told her it was Gideon. She said it reminded her of a faithful Nephite warrior. I told her that Keryn too most associated the name with the Book of Mormon character. I mentioned that I liked the association with the biblical Gideon. She couldn't think of the story right off, so I started to tell her about Gideon raising an army to fight for Israel.
Many men joined the cause, but the Lord didn't want them to believe that they would be victorious on their own strength alone, so he reduced their number through various tests until only 300 remained. With such a small group, they wouldn't be able to rely on their own power, they would need the help of the Lord.
And then it hit me how similar that story is to my own little Gideon. He is facing his battle at a natural disadvantage and he will be required to lean on the Lord more than he otherwise might have. And that won't be a bad thing. We're so blessed to have him join our family.

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