Some of you are here because my wife directed you here to find the story behind the name of our new daughter, Markaye LaNea Brown.  Here’s how she almost became “LaNevalice”.  When our oldest boy Kevin was approaching, we were hunting through names. We settled on girl names first. Amber Alicia (which we got on the 4th try), and Markaye LaNea (which was the 5th).  A girl in my high school was named Markaye and I thought it was a pretty name.  We both liked it, and after several days of pondering it we realized that it was a concatenation of the two grandmothers - Alicia’s mom Margene, and my mother Kaye.  So the name was a done deal at that point - so long as she decided to show up.  We also thought LaNea fit well with Markaye. LaNea is my dad’s mother. 

When Markaye was finally born, I was proud of how her name had captured 3 grandmothers.  Then I realized that just a slight change to “LaNevalice” would get them all!  Evelyn Foster is Alicia’s mother’s mother.  Maurene Gorringe was her father’s step mother.  Alice Gorringe her father’s real mother.  Alice Gourley is my mother’s mother.  And of course, Alicia, Markaye’s mother, also is included.  So in one feld swoop her name would include large portions of her mother’s name, her two grandmother’s, and all 5 great grandmothers!  I was feeling a bit left out, but then realized that Markaye starts with M, and so does Mike, so there you go.

I was seriously tempted.  I know she’d never divulge her middle name if it were LaNevalice, but I thought when she’s older it would give her reason to think of her grandmothers, and the story itself might be endearing.

I should just do it.  We’ve already had to change her birth certificate twice, so maybe the third time’s the charm.  First, we planned to spell it MarKaye LaNea with a capital K.  The birth certificate people thought I left too much space between the letters, and the printed copy came in as “Mar Kaye La Nea”. So we called and they changed it.  Later I realized as I wrote her name in cursive that I had to lift the pen to make the K, so it really looked like her first name was just Mar.  To avoid complicating her life, we called again to change to lower case.

So why not a third time?  We haven’t blessed her yet, so I tell Alicia she’ll never really know what the middle name is until the Spirit directs!  We’ll soon see….

So as you can see below we definitely have a Full House (a winning poker hand, that is - 3 Kings and 2 Queens!).  She’s a “Fabulous” addition.  We’ve got our hands full now, and it feels like I’ll flop at times - especially if Alicia keeps pulling the ball.  Luckily we have our trusty dog Shadow to chase off friends, neighbors, and relatives.

What a happy, wonderful family we have.  It’s a great time to be alive!

The world is quick to conclude that increasing the human population does nothing but bad for the Earth.  Is “population” a bad thing?  When we reach into the many billions, is that destructive or unsustainable?  If it is destructive, isn’t that a function of our telestial in-fighting and selfishness more than the number of mouths to feed?  How many children would a faithful, enlightened Latter-Day Saint family have?  Is there a responsible stopping point?  In light of the millions of children without loving homes, is it better to adopt than to have your own?

How many of us wish we’d never been born?  Isn’t being born into a war-torn, torturous, starving hell-on-earth dominated by hatred and lies still not better than not being born at all?  Is our Father so unmerciful as to deny even the slightest hope or joy to people in such circumstances?

Other topics in this series that don’t lend themselves to much comment include two miracles that happened in my life leading me to this subject.  Also, how many people have ever lived? And how many “Mormons” are there in the world? (Trick question).  What does it mean to be “a Saint”? Can you have heard the gospel, remained faithful and committed to something else, and still end up a Saint in the same sense as Paul and Joseph Smith?

If you’ve read some of the series, please feel free to post snippets and comment on them, or just post your own original thoughts.

• Miraculous “hugs from heaven” occurred for me as a direct result of pondering my size in the world after the 5-billionth baby was born, and then again with the 6-billionth baby 15 years later.
• My prayer at age 13: “Dear God, there are 5 billion people here. Do you know who I am? Do you love me?”

 

The most lasting, beautiful, and powerful spiritual experiences I ever had came as personal affirmation from God that He knows me personally, and that I am not simply a spec among billions. These experiences came as a direct result of turmoil in my life as I pondered evolution and world population. I share this hoping you as a reader can gain insight from what I believe the spirit has taught me about the truth of these subjects, getting at the heart of why God created the world.

 

My “identity crisis” brought on by evolution and “the 5-billionth baby”

“5-Billionth Baby Born Today” was the headline on June 2nd 1984 that was pounded into my mind with each of the 51 papers I prepared for delivery. I was 13 years old, and the following weeks were difficult as I became painfully aware of my stature relative to this number. “I occupy half of a basement bedroom in Richfield, Utah – a town you could hardly find on the state map, let alone any other. If I died, my family would miss me I’m sure, but the world would never know or care that I had lived.” I remember thinking that there must be tens if not hundreds of thousands of people praying at any point in time, and I wondered how Heavenly Father could even hear my prayers, let alone know who I was.

 

Pondering evolution made me doubtful of God’s existence

At school, the theory of evolution and the “big bang” theory were not subjects of great focus – really only passing mentions by our teachers – but I understood there was logic in these ideas. Science seemed to know the recipes of life, and the works of God were not acknowledged as potential ingredients. In this I would not say it is wrong to teach evolution. Rather it is important for everyone to understand whatever it is that millions believe in. I do wish I’d had some context, or at least someone who could help me understand that God and some version of evolution were not necessarily incompatible.

 

I recall great mental and emotional anguish at not only feeling so insignificant, but also unsure if God existed at all! “Maybe I’m smarter than my parents. Have they been closed-minded to science? Maybe they and all those in my church want to believe in God so badly that over time they have been brain-washed into believing there is a God”. (Yes, I was a teenager too). I remember particularly the testimonies of grandparents who said they “know that God lives”. I thought, “Know is a strong word! How can you know such a thing?”

 

Pray to someone that I wasn’t sure existed?

I drew upon my roots as I contemplated praying to a Being I was unsure existed. I wanted to explain to God all the turmoil of my mind and seek assurance that He loved me and knew who I was. However I was sure I would be devastated and resigned to seeking truth only by means of reason and science if I asked sincerely and a no-doubt-about-it answer was late in coming. The conflict of my need to pray and fear of no response delayed my attempt for weeks if not months, but one night I felt I could delay no longer.

 

“Father, do you love me?”

During a prayer that seemed like hours to a teenager (but was only about 30 minutes I’m sure), all the while afraid to ask for fear of no response, I experienced a “leap of faith” where the spirit whispered to my heart that I could go ahead and ask my question right then and know that a response would be forthright. I had resolved to ask if my father loved me. I figured that an answer to that would not only confirm that He existed, but that I was known to Him among the billions, and that He would send help when necessary. With new found confidence born of the Spirit, audibly I asked, “Heavenly Father, do you love me?” I had barely uttered the last word when a nearly electric sensation overwhelmed my mind and heart. My whole body was tingly not unlike when your foot falls asleep and you have to beat it on the floor to wake it up. I began to laugh and cry simultaneously. The sadness and confusion was immediately replaced as my mind raced understanding. I knew that in spite of the billions, I was known, valued, and loved. It was a true sensation of joy.

 

I was on cloud nine for weeks afterwards. I’ve since felt that Heavenly Father was just waiting for my faith and desire to build strong enough that He could reach down from Heaven and give me the big hug He knew I needed, and that He wanted so much to give. Strangely, my testimony of the Lord’s true gospel came later. At this point I knew two things: God is real, and though I’ll probably never know the science behind it while on this side of the veil, I am known and precious unto Him among the billions, even more so than I know and love my own three sons and daughter now.

 

Addressing the skeptics

A skeptic (sometimes known as a godless psychologist) might hear this story and explain that because of my upbringing, my psyche needed confirmation of a God to avoid upending my world. Hence I wanted an answer so badly that I triggered a chemical release in my prayer which caused the euphoric sensation which I interpreted as God’s love for me. If you can’t accept the possibility of a God who loves us, then it is only rational to conclude something like that. It may well be that the mechanics of the euphoric sensation could be tagged to a particular chemistry. It is wrong to conclude there is no God simply because you can explain and label one of His mechanisms. Even if chemistry was involved, I KNOW that spirit was also involved, and that truly God did reach out and hug me and confirm my value to Him.

 

15 years later… God’s awareness of me and love for me is made manifest in a fun little “just between you and me secret” at the birth of “the 6-billionth baby”.

Fifteen years after the 5-billionth baby invoked a search that resulted in a miraculous realization of Heavenly Father’s love for me, my second child Jeffery was nearing his birth. We heard in the news, “The United Nations predicts that the 6-billionth person will arrive on October 12th, 1999”. Upon hearing this I recalled fondly that the most special super-natural event of my life had come directly from pondering and praying brought on largely when the 5-billionth baby was born. My second son, Jeffery, was due to be born around that time, but it was still a few months away and I thought the chances were a bit remote.

 

As it turned out, Jeffery was born on that very day! – and another news paper announced the milestone. I looked to Heaven and knew that not only had God had just sent me a Heavenly parcel, but also an accompanying email (e-ternal mail), “Mike, I still think of you, and I remember the headline that first led you to find Me. Enjoy your 6-billionth baby. He’s one-of-a-kind. I know him, your family, and each of the other billions as well.” This was a special “nudge and a wink” from heaven that only I could appreciate. More evidence once again that God knows me. Though it’s impossible to prove, and the mathematical odds of the 6-billionth birth actually occurring on that day are remote, I am convinced that Jeffery really is that one-in-a-billion boy.

 

The “population control” deception; responsibility for the earth placed on God’s heirs

The first experience has helped me better understand circumstances that led the Prophet to the Sacred Grove. I also better realize that “population” is not something to be feared or controlled, but something to be welcomed, rejoice in, and make room for more. That if we do as Adam and Eve were commanded and “take care of the garden”, we will seek to be responsible stewards over the earth. We will not allow ourselves to consume or pollute for shear vanity. We will encourage science and actions aimed at reducing our impact on the earth, and improving the earth’s sustainability of God’s very large but very precious family.

 

Boy scouts have a “leave no trace” policy when they camp in the wilderness. While it is impossible to “leave no trace” with billions, it is possible for a single individual to decide to adhere closely to that principle in their lives. By this I don’t advocate living in a tent, but rather that maybe we should consider if a Hummer isn’t a little too conspicuously consumptive of resources, and selfishly consumptive of dollars placed in our stewardship, compared to the practical features it provides relative to other options.

 

Is God a delinquent father?

But most importantly, God’s still-in-force command to “multiply and replenish the earth” confirms that He will let us know when the earth is full to His satisfaction; and that we can trust God to take care of His family and to clean up and restore the earth when it has fulfilled its first divine purpose. We should do what we can to keep His garden clean, productive, and prepared for the next billion. It offends God when we suggest He is unfit to provide for His family (by seeking to care for the Garden in an “arm of the flesh” way such as reducing our numbers contrary to His commands, for essentially selfish reasons, cloaked in the seemingly noble titles of “sustainability” or “defusing the population bomb”. This method of caring for the Garden denies the greater purpose for which the Garden was created – for as many of God’s children as we’ll let Him have!). I look forward to seeing God’s personal touch at the arrival of the 7-billionth person! I wonder what kind of “wink and nod” He has in store this time!

 

 

• I like 70 billion.  Can the Spirit teach us anything meaningful from this seemingly frivolous and academic estimation?  

• With 10% of human history alive today, God is as active as ever! 

Estimation approach depends on belief about our history
It is clearly impossible to determine with any accuracy the answer to this question, but it is a fun academic activity anyway.  Several have tried, and it depends a lot on what you believe about the history of mankind as to how you approach the calculation.  For those who do not believe in God, or at least do not believe in Adam and Eve, then they start very far back (50,000-1,000,000 years back), and completely disregard the story of Noah.