Don't Wait for the New Year

Can you believe it’s already November which means 2014 is right around the corner! This is often the time of year we begin to think about doing things “anew”. Many are preparing for the launch of the New Year. We're thinking about the resolutions that we might make, let alone keep. Whenever, I think about the start of a new season, I reflect on the meaning that season will have in my life. Who should I meet? What new endeavors should I take on or let go of….

Recently, I was having a conversation with a good friend who selected a name for her soon to be born baby girl. She selected a name that she loves! The name honors both maternal and paternal grandmothers (much to their delight) but is also has an amazing meaning. In essence the name means “With grace and highly favored by God.” WOW! Powerful and truly a beautiful name. Of course, it made me reflect on the meaning of names. With a name like “Mothyna”, I’m constantly asked…what does that mean? Well, while I have never seen it anywhere else, which means I’ve never found a meaning for my name, I tell folks all the time that I’d like to think it means something akin to “the one whom God has blessed to bless others.” J I’m striving. Ok, so yes the point is that I don’t know… it could mean that or something not so flattering. However, going through this experience with my sister-friend made me think, what is the true meaning of a name? How do we go forward to realize that meaning or can we?

How many times have we met some beautiful lady with a name like Grace yet she is an overly judgmental person or a man named Malik and he is certainly anything but king like? I’m a huge fan of names with GREAT meaning. I believe when selecting a name for a child or person, a name should inspire that person to stretch their potential, but isn’t that only the starting point? The true meaning of a name will be known when that person establishes a legacy through the way that they live. No one looks up the “meaning” of Jada Pickett Smith’s name or Albert Einstein’s and then says this is who they are? Rather we look to their actions, their contributions to the society and the world in general. Quite frankly, it appears those who will tell the “meaning” of your name are those you have touched. Here at HWHN we continually share the meaning of Mrs. Vivian Ryan. To us her name means far more than “lively”. It means the realization of a dream, faith in the potential of the young, quiet elegance and strength. Why? Because if it were not for Mrs. Vivian Ryan and the faith she had in a young 22 year old, HWHN as you know it, would not be here today. For women like Mrs. Ryan, who have nurtured the true meaning within women like us we are forever grateful.

Our actions are as much our definition as the words we may strive to live up to. Thus, the true meaning of ones name lives in the amazing potential for greatness that exists within them. Whether you “hate” your name or love it, its true value grows from within- that essential part of you. So what does your name mean? Are you just living up to your potential or blowing that concept out of the water knowing that your potential is boundless? Are you getting rid of the people, places and things that are limiting your growth? Don’t wait until the New Year, to begin anew, rather each day, brings a new season. Each day is an opportunity to define the meaning of your name. Today is anew…

About the Author: 

Sister Mothyna James-Brightful is a self proclaimed “Self Love Revolutionary”. She has spent the last decade empowering women and girls to live authentic lives. Sister Mothyna is the Visionary Director and Co-founder of Heal a Woman to Heal a Nation. Sister Mothyna is co-author of Because I am a Queen...100 Affirmations for Daily Living. Stay connected www.hwhn.org: Twitter @mothyna

What's in a Name

I am amazed at the number of people I come across who are unaware of the meaning of their names!  Why would you not want to know what people are calling you every day?  I mean sure, you’ve heard it all of your life, but like any other word that has ever been sent or received, your name is spoken with purpose.  There is so much substance that can be discovered about who you are and what you’ve come here to do, just by knowing your name. 

This afternoon I was at the supermarket, and I started to go to the self -checkout lanes where no one was, but for me that isn’t always such an exciting or advantageous thing.  That’s because I enjoy connecting with people and experiencing their presence, no matter where I am or what I’m doing.  Miracles happen in the moments, and I was led to reroute my direction into the nearest check lane with a live person.  The woman working the register barely looked up to greet me, but I noticed her.  Her aloofness was attractive; people with closed doors inspire me to inquire within, they get me curious. 

My eyes were suddenly drawn to her name tag.  I smiled at our commonality, and said, “That’s my middle name, Nicole.”  She responded, “Yeah, it’s common.”  I proceeded to ask her if she knew what it meant, and that it meant “Victory.”  Suddenly she perked up a bit, seeming a little more interested in what for her was just another mundane moment on the job.  I went on to explain that someone once further edified me that it specifically meant “Victory for the People.”  She said she knew it meant “something” about “the people,” but not the “Victory” part.  I could tell right there that the smiles we wore mirrored a sense of pride.  As I gathered my bags, her demeanor was changed, and as I prepared to continue my day’s journey, she said, “Ok, have a good night and thanks for telling me that!”  Smiling still. 

It’s so exhilarating for me as a Restorative Life Coach to witness people shift into their higher selves.  In that brief but poignant interaction, an exchange was made in our words spoken, and I’m sure that conversation served a purpose.  I marveled at the possibilities catalyzed in the exchange.  Could her knowing inspire her to think differently about herself and her circumstances like it did for me?  Could it have given her greater insight on how she’s being called to serve in the earth?  I mean sure, Nicole is a common name.  She’s right.  But when you think of it, victory is often won with an army, even if that army is of one, the victory comes with a strength beyond your own which some would identify as the Spirit of God.  So though Nicole is a name often heard, it’s power is far from mediocre. 

Coming to truly know my name gave my sense of purpose depth.  Once I found out its meaning, it resonated with me and helps to make sense and give confirmation of what I feel in my belly that I am being called to do.  Even if you have an uncommon name, you can feel out the meaning by trying to find its root, or make up your own meaning by creating an acrostic poem which is when you take the letters of a word and attach your own representation.

For example, it was hard for me to find the meaning of Jonae, but I did find that its root is “John” which means “one especially loved by God.”  …I’ll take it!  J  I also did an acrostic poem for “Jonae”:

J-  Joyful

O- Overcomer

N- Negating the impossible

A-     All together

E- Excellent!

See?  Even if you can’t find or don’t like the meaning of your name, you have the power to give it meaning! 

Don’t stop there!  This can be a really empowering and fun exercise.  Make it speak to your spirit and embody who you already know who you are at your core.  I invite you to journey into your last name as well.  This is where you may really discover some interesting things, like your ancestry.  I don’t know the ancestral roots of the “Potter’s,” but I know that God is beheld as “The Potter.”  So, for that I envisioned and embodied me being shaped and molded into a beautiful vessel by the God of my understanding.  Now when I researched “Gill,” a surname inherited from my father who’s Trinidadian, that’s where it got really interesting for me because I for a long time didn’t know my family from his side.  I found that the “Gill’s” were an ancient Indian Jaat Punjabi tribe of warriors in India, somewhere I’m longing to go for some reason I’ve yet to discover.  But knowing my name, I mean really knowing, has helped me to take back my power and walk with a stride of strength in knowing because I made myself aware on divine Purpose!

Still don’t buy it?  Well what is the purpose of a fish “gill?” The gills of a fish allow it to breath, or experience respiratory exchange, under water…that’s what I do!  My chief calling is to breathe into spirits under water in need of life giving oxygen exchange so that together we can work to catalyze the manifestation of your optimal potential! 

Remember, I am here to serve you with triumphant encouragement so that you too may experience “VICTORY” in your life!

Author: Jonae N. Potter-Gill is a Restorative Life Coach and prolific Inspirational Communicator.   In addition to her profession as a nurse, she works with individuals as a spiritual midwife, nurturing them through the process of giving birth to their personal healing and transformation using a holistic touch and approach.  She is passionate about helping women and communities as a whole become empowered and achieve overall wellness through vision, creativity, and love! You can visit her blog at www.victoriousexhortations.wordpress.com to experience more of her messages of inspiration and encouragement.