Search Results for: blog the names of our god

Were Any Of Your Ancestors A New Year’s Baby?

If you do genealogical research, you have probably collected many names and many dates that are associated with those names. There is the date of birth, date of marriage, date of military service, and so on until the date of death. As the New Year approaches, it might be fun to look back at the birth dates of your ancestors. Is anyone in your family tree a New Year’s baby? I personally do not know of anyone, family or friend, who has a birthday of January 1. Of course, like any other day of the year, plenty of people are … Continue reading →

Top Ten Most Common Canadian Surnames

In 2007 CBS News in Canada published a list of the top ten most common Canadian surnames. They compiled this list by searching through telephone directories that were compiled by a company called infoUSA. This is an unscientific study, and it does not take into account anyone who did not happen to have a telephone number attached to their surname in that year. But, it does give a general idea of what the top ten most common Canadian surnames might be. According to this study, the most common Canadian surname is Li. This name has Chinese origin. It might mean … Continue reading →

The Top Ten Most Common French Surnames

Did someone in your family speak French as a first language? As you put together your family tree, you may have discovered ancestors who emigrated from France to the United States. The most common French surname is Martin. This name is derived from the first name Martinus, which is Latin. Martinus refers to the Roman god of fertility and war, who was named Mars. There was a popular 4th-century saint named Martin of Tours, who was very popular with people who lived in Europe during the Middle ages. It is possible that the surname Martin was adopted by people who … Continue reading →

Top Ten Most Common Surnames in Australia

Do you have relatives in Australia? One way to trace your relatives is by looking for a surname that you both have in common. If your ancestor has one of the top ten most common surnames in Australia, there is potential that your family tree has branches that connect to Australia. The ten most popular surnames in Australia have some commonalities with the most popular surnames in other English speaking countries. There are also some significant differences. A few of the names on this list do not appear on the lists of most common surnames in the United States, or … Continue reading →

God’s Call

Jesus tells a parable of the landowner who went out early in the morning to find laborers for his vineyard, Matthew 20:1. The landowner found some men waiting to be hired, agreed on a wage and sent them off to work in his field. The landowner saw there were not enough workers, so the same thing happened when he went back at the third hour, except this time he told the workers ‘whatever is right I will give you,’ verse 4. The workers were happy to work under these conditions. This was repeated this at the sixth and ninth hour … Continue reading →

God Wants Workers not Shirkers

‘God wants workers not shirkers,’ that’s what a visiting minister told us one day in his sermon. Sadly, the case in too many churches is that too much is left to too few workers. This was never the way it was intended to work. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 12:4 that there are varieties of gifts and God expects us to use them. There are varieties of ministries, 1 Corinthians 12:5. Some people have a real knack for one to one relationships and welcoming people, but ask them to play the piano or do some up front job and … Continue reading →

Protecting Your Child from Mistakes

You can’t always protect your children from mistakes. Sometimes you’ve got to let them go, trusting God to uphold and undertake for them. It’s not easy. I know. Letting go is something I struggle with, but I’ve had to learn to do it. You have to trust that you have brought them up so that ultimately they will make the right choices and not make decisions that will endanger their lives. It might mean making choices we won’t agree with, like dating a non Christian or them becoming involved in activities we would rather they did not or that we … Continue reading →

The Defining Marks of Those Who Have a Real Experience of God

What are the defining marks of those who have had a real experience of God? Yesterday we looked at some of them. Here are some others. A predominate mark of those who have had an experience of God, is love, Colossians 1:4. Because God is love and as believers seek to become more godly, I John 2:6, they will also reflect the same attitude of love. I John: 2:9-10 and I John 4:7-12, say we cannot claim to love God if we do not love others. So, if we have had an experience of God we will become people who … Continue reading →

Holiday Baby Names

If you are expecting your baby to be born during or even slightly after the holidays, why not consider choosing a holiday-related baby name? Oh, I’m not talking about anything too goofy, such as “Tinsel,” although that would certainly be unique. Did you know that the name, “Timothy,” has long be associated with Christmas? Take a look at some of the following ideas for a holiday baby name. I remember the first time I realized that someone’s name could be associated with a holiday. It was a girl I met when I was just a girl myself. Her name was … Continue reading →

Baby Names: Pay Attention to the Initials

When it comes to baby names, initials mean more than you might think. Keep reading to find out why. When you are expecting your new baby, chances are that you have gone over every name in the book, uh the baby names book, that is. There are endless possibilities, aren’t there? And even if you find a name that you like, there is a real possibility that your spouse won’t care for that name at all. But when you finally agree on a name (or names as the case may be), you would think that you are all set, right? … Continue reading →