HE KNOWS HER NAME - KAIRA

During the hustle and bustle of preparing for Annais’ first birthday party it dawned on me that I was missing something, so while at Wal-Mart picking up last minute items I decided to buy a pregnancy test and take it in the public restroom. Within seconds the miraculous lines appeared and after comparing it to the package directions I dialed my husband at work and blurted “I’m pregnant!” It was as if I had told him we won the lottery, he was ecstatic! “I didn’t wait the full three minutes, I might not be. I’m going to take it again when I get home and I’ll call you back,” I said frantically. Upon returning home I laid Annais down and took the second test in the package and as quickly as the first “positive”. With a few minutes to digest the results I thought about how perfect and awesome God’s timing is. There was none of my “planning” in this pregnancy. In our heart of hearts we knew He intended another child for our family and were overjoyed with anticipation. Settling into our joyous surprise and the thrill of expecting our third baby we began, as is our practice, praying for a name. I felt such a strong call, anointing and purpose for this little one’s life. I just prayed that I would hear Him as clearly as I did when He spoke Annais’ name. During my pregnancy with Annais a friend recommended a book “Hope Resurrected” by Dutch Sheets and ever since I had been meaning to get it. While purchasing videos and books for my little ones online in April I added “Hope Resurrected” to my order. When the book arrived I immediately started reading it. I was deeply moved by the first story in the book and I couldn’t seem to get it out of my mind. The woman had four daughters with the middle names Joy, Faith, Grace & Charity and she wanted another child, but knew the if she had another girl her middle name would be Hope. The woman writes, “…that was impossible. My life was so deluged with hope deferred that there was absolutely no way I could have a child with the name Hope. It would have been the ultimate lie. Thus, I decided not to have a seventh child.” The tragedy of that story and the great result of hope deferred that ensued reminded me of the hope deferred that I had once been imprisoned by, but more importantly the Hope by which I now live in Christ Jesus. Since childhood and well into my 30s I suffered with times of often paralyzing depression (which I will now call hope deferred). I began to think of the child that I carried – Hope? Could it be the name that we’d been praying for? As I lay in the bath one night I asked God that very question just minutes before I picked up my book again and read . . . A mother, the instant that she knows she is with child, lives her every moment in anticipation of delivery. After a time she cannot take a step, make a move, think a thought that is disassociated from the coming of her child. In America, people are supposed to ignore the obvious fact that a woman is with child. In France the case is quite the contrary. If a man is introduced to a woman who is an expectant mother, it is the height of politeness for him to congratulate her. “Je vous felicite de votre esperance” – “I congratulate you on your hope” – is a common phrase among the cultured. After this paragraph Sheets writes: Your heart is being healed and you are becoming pregnant with hope. Congratulations! As I read further in the book Sheets also writes: In the Greek words “due time” (also rendered “appointed season”) are idios kairos, which is a powerful phrase pregnant with hope seeds for us. “Time” is the word kairos, which means “right time; the opportune point of time at which something should be done.” page 66 Such was the case with Hannah and Elizabeth, both barren women who asked God for a child. In each case, the Lord answered with a son but waited for His timing because while they wanted a child, He needed a prophet. They owned a kairos, but God shared ownership; and His kairos involved not only their fulfillment, but also His eternal purposes. page 67 In my daily name search for a name for this child I often tried to find names meaning appointed or called and here right in front of me was a description of what this baby is - our kairos. The name Kaira came to mind and I immediately looked up the meaning and it is “last, final, complete” – perfect! What a joy it is to be free in Christ and be able to name my child, Kaira Hope, after the very Hope to which I have been called in His perfect time. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 (New International Version)