Vera and Lydia’s Baby Dedication

Our baby girls, Vera and Lydia were dedicated to Lord on October 23, 2016. Although I know and believe this was not a day of their salvation, it was simply a day where we publicly professed to raise them up to know, love, and serve Christ.

I pray as their mother that I cultivate a heart of curiosity and a love for God. I pray our girls have a yearning to know the truth. I do not simply want them to know the Lord because it’s the “right thing to do” or something they grew up knowing or doing, but because they have come to their own decision of following Christ with their lives.

All I can do is introduce them to Jesus and let them see Him living in me. We can discuss scripture. We can pray together. We can talk about the hard things (why God allows bad things to happen), we can talk about heaven, we can talk about our doubts and fears, we can talk about evidence for and against Christ….and I want to share with my girls how I came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, and how He is real in my life.

I by no means believe that on dedication day that immediately they were saved. But I do know that on dedication day, it took things to another level for Josh and me as parents. Because dedication isn’t necessarily about our daughters per se, because nothing really changed for them. It is more about us as parents—dedicating our children to the Lord and promising to grow them up in the faith that is so real to us and as ultimately changed our lives. We pray they are able to experience the peace and freedom that is in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and ultimately receive the prize of eternal life in Heaven.

I did this for Genevieve, and I want to do it for these girls too. Here is a blessing for Vera and Lydia when I think about dedicating them to their creator.

Vera and Lydia,

You are fearfully and wonderfully made. Every part of you. May you always know who you are in Christ and that you are exactly who He made you to be. You will never feel a confidence like you will feel knowing who you are in the Lord. May you experience His love in complete fullness.

May you always desire to know Him and have a curiosity about Him. God is so complex, and may we never stop searching to know Him and pursue Him more.

May you always be loving and kind. May you strive to make peace with everyone, but not at the cost of avoiding conflict. A Godly confrontation is better than passivity. May you be strong and be leaders.

May the only person you follow be Jesus Christ and other Godly men and women worth looking up to.

May you find your beauty in Christ. May you know who you are in Him so very much that you don’t get sidetracked by this crazy world who tries to define what beauty is. God defines beauty. That is YOU! You are created and fashioned by the most High God!

May you have friends who are bosom friends and kindred spirits (yes, an Anne of Green Gables shoutout). Friends that lift you up. That lead you to scripture during hard times and good times. That laugh with you and love you with an unselfish love that does not demand things in return. May you experience a type of David and Jonathan friendship where you stick close together at all times.

May you girls always be there for one another. May you be the best of friends always putting your sister before yourself. There is a reason God put a baby from Kentucky and a baby from Louisiana together in the same crib- you were destined for each other. Never stop learning from each other. May there be a fierce Jesus love between the two of you.

May you watch and follow your older sister, Genevieve. She is an example-setter for you two. Where she goes, I pray you follow. She is strong, and lovely, and fierce. Be like Genevieve. She is worth following.

May you know the Lord at an early age and His presence always be tangible to you.

May you always be sensitive to the Holy Spirit.

May you always feel safe talking to Daddy and I about the deepest parts of your heart. We want to pray with you, cry with you, celebrate with you, and experience life’s highs and lows with you. You are never a burden.

May the Lord keep you from all harm. He is your strong tower and mighty fortress.

May you be compassionate and always willing to serve others in their time of need.

May you be blessed with many talents, always giving honor and glory to the Lord, the giver of those gifts.

May you commit your ways to the Lord and succeed in All you do. Favor comes from Him- May it be upon you.

May you work willingly at whatever you do, always striving to please the Lord your God.

May you always know how much you are LOVED, CHOSEN, ADORED by the Lord and by us. You are treasures. Irreplaceable treasures that were longed for and loved long before you entered this world.

God has HUGE plans for you two. I can’t wait to watch you change this world.

This is a blessing for you two on your dedication day. We will continue to have blessings for you girls on your birthdays and other special days in your life. As we read and speak blessing over you, they go straight from our mouths and hearts to God’s ears.

We adore you Vera and Lydia!

Love,

Mommy and Daddy

As amazing as dedication day was, it cannot hold a candle to the day that our girls voluntarily invite Jesus to be the Lord of their lives. That will be a celebration like none other!!!!!

So thankful to dedicate these precious babies to our Lord,

Aly