Isaiah 65:17-21 / John 4:43-54
Having to choose a name is certainly not that easy a task. There are a few factors to consider.
Of course the meaning of the name must be taken into consideration, and also how it sounds, and other things besides.
To be called "Joy" or "Gladness" or even both is certainly very challenging to live up to it.
It means that every moment of our existence is to be nothing less than to be joyful and to be glad.
And we doubt that we can be always joyful and have gladness so we avoid taking such words to be our names.
But in the 1st reading we heard the Lord telling His people to be glad and rejoice and that He calls Jerusalem "Joy" and her people "Gladness", and He will rejoice over Jerusalem and exalt in His people.
That is also God's promise to us, that He will rejoice and exalt over us.
But we have not lived up to it because we have let the other concerns of our lives dim out the joy and gladness of our lives.
Concerns like sickness and death as we heard in the gospel. Or other concerns like job and financial security, marital and family problems and the list goes on and on.
But like the court official whose son was ill but believed in what Jesus said, we too must believe God has given us joy and gladness in our lives .
Even though there may be challenges and difficulties, let us be joyful and be glad. The Lord God wants to rejoice and exalt over us. Let us not be anything lesser than that.