WHEN HEAVEN SPEAKS A NAME!

My grandmother, Viola Bell, gave birth to eleven children! And twice, she carried double the
blessing—two sets of twins. The names of the first pair were Darleen and Doreen. But when my
father and his twin brother were born, the weight of raising so many little ones, and the shock
of receiving “double trouble” again, left my grandparents stunned into silence.

They did not name the boys. Not the first day. Not the third. Not the seventh. Not even the
tenth day.

For eleven days, those twins were held, fed, rocked, prayed over, and introduced to siblings and
neighbors without names. Family would visit and coo over “the babies.” Nurses would check
vitals for “Baby A and Baby B.” Life continued and the boys waited for an identity to be ‘spoken’
over them.

I have often wondered—what changed on that eleventh day?
What holy moment caused my grandparents to finally look down and say, “Donald and Ronald”?
Did one twin make a familiar gesture?
Did the other let out a cry with a tone they recognized?
Did a sibling say something that unlocked clarity?

Was there—perhaps—a quiet whisper from heaven guiding them?
Because naming is never accidental. Naming is a kind of blessing. Naming reveals purpose.

Perhaps, my grandparents’ moment mirrors something in Mary’s story.

Mary, also, lived in the tension of waiting—until an angel appeared and spoke a name over her
promised child: Immanuel. God with us.

A name that braided together prophecy and hope.
A name that reminded Israel that during war, exile, and silence: You are not abandoned. God is
drawing near.

For my grandparents, it took eleven days to ‘speak’ a name.
For Israel, it took four hundred years of silence before heaven broke through with the
announcement:
“His name shall be Immanuel.”
And that name still carries the weight of the promise!
Because of Immanuel, God is with us.

And because of Immanuel, we can be with God.

Family, as we move through this Advent season, may we not only remember the name—
may we speak it over every weary part of our lives,
whisper it over every fear,
hold it in every moment of waiting,
and proclaim it in every place where hope feels thin.
Because the name matters.
And this season, more than ever, we need the promise it carries:

Immanuel-God with us, Amen!

Dr. Ron Bell