A Good Name

Proverbs 22:1 says "A good name is more desirable than great riches".  Many people have asked us about Ren's name so I thought I would let everyone know how she got her name.

This week we received a copy of the birth note that was left with Ren when she was abandoned.  She was abandoned when she was three weeks old.  She was found outside an outpatient building in Beijing.  The note that was left by her birth mother did not give her a name.  When she was taken to the orphanage, they gave her the name, Baojuan Ren.  Baojuan was her first name and Ren was her last name.   She was not given a middle name.

When we were matched with her, we decided to name her Sarah Ren Griffin.  We wanted to name her Sarah because that is Grandma Josie Griffin's first name.  We both love Grandma so much and know that our relationship with the Lord has a lot to do with her Godly heritage.  We loved the name Ren, so we decided to keep it.

So why Phillips?  This is one of my favorite "adoption moments" to share, (prior to getting Ren, of course).  A few days after we received the paperwork and pictures of Ren, my Daddy made a suggestion.  He said that he had been thinking and that Sarah Ren needed to have "our" name too.  At first I wasn't sure what he meant.  Then he said, "You know, like Henry.  He is Henry Phillips Griffin."  My Daddy has no idea how much that meant to me.  If you are a parent of biological and adopted children it is a huge blessing to know that all your children are accepted as part of the family.

After that conversation, I never thought about it twice.  She would definitely be Sarah Ren Phillips Griffin.  Phillips is a bittersweet name. It is sweet because I am very proud of my family and have always been proud "to be a Phillips".  But it is also a little bitter because I so wish my Mimi and PawPaw Phillips could have met Ren on this earth.  My Pawpaw always called me "Little Girl".  I know he would call Ren the same.  Or he may have called her "Burr Head", (another one of his pet names).

To Grandma Josie, to Mimi and Pawpaw, and most of all, to my Daddy, Thank you for the "Good names".

Sarah Ren Phillips Griffin