Baby Dedication
New Birth Conception and a new birth are a blessing. It's exciting whenever a new child enters a family. Scripture tells us that children are a gift from God (Psalm 127:3) in which we are to nurture, protect, and give thanks for. They are entrusted to parents to fulfill the calling on their lives which are primarily to come to know God through the eyes and heart of their Saviour Jesus Christ and to enjoy God in this life and forevermore. Biblical Basis for Baby Dedications 1 Samuel 1 is a good example where Hannah presented her son Samuel to the Lord. In Luke 2:22 we read that Mary and Joseph brought their baby Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem in order to present him before the Lord. Psalm 56:13 “For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.” Baby Dedication Ceremony Dedicating a child to the Lord demonstrates a belief that parents have a responsibility to love, protect, and provide for them. Parenting can be a challenge especially when the parents may or may not have had healthy role models. As a result a baby dedication service is not merely a ritual, but a declaration to God and others that they will need help, godly direction, and prayer to raise their child in the light of God's Word. |
Parents Responsibilities
It may take a village to raise a child, but the first responsibility is that of the parents. Proverbs 22:6 says that parents are to "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." Preparation and Planning Meeting beforehand to prepare and plan for this very special ceremony is important. If others are to be involved such as god parents it may also be helpful to invite them into the conversation. Deuteronomy 6:4-7 Listen, Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! You must love the Lord your God with your whole mind, your whole being, and all your strength. These words I am commanding you today must be kept in mind, and you must teach them to your children and speak of them as you sit in your house, as you walk along the road, as you lie down, and as you get up. See also Proverbs 1:7 and Ephesians 6:4. |