Twenty-one years ago, I whispered a prayer that was simple to say but difficult to imagine how God would answer. My daughter, Naomi, had been born with Down syndrome and several complications, and the early weeks of her life were spent in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at a Boston hospital. Separated from her by a wall of plexiglass, I prayed God would strengthen her tiny body. But beneath that prayer simmered harder questions. What did I actually want for her life? What did it mean for her to be human, made in the image of God?

Inspired by Nehemiah 8:10, which declares that “the joy of the Lord is your strength,” my wife suggested that we name our daughter Naomi Joy. We prayed that she would receive the joy of the Lord and give the joy of the Lord. The Lord has answered that prayer more amply than we could have asked, and in ways we never anticipated.

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Walter Kim

Walter Kim became the president of the National Association of Evangelicals in January 2020. He previously served as a pastor at Boston’s historic Park Street Church and at churches in Vancouver, Canada and Charlottesville, Virginia, as well as a campus chaplain at Yale University. He preaches, writes and engages in collaborative leadership to connect the Bible to the intellectual and cultural issues of the day. He regularly teaches in conferences and classrooms; addresses faith concerns with elected officials and public institutions; and provides theological and cultural commentary to leading news outlets. He serves on the boards of Christianity Today and World Relief and consults with a wide range of organizations. Kim received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, his M.Div. from Regent College in Vancouver, and his B.A. from Northwestern University.