A few weeks ago, our friends
dedicated their adorable two-year-old son (name omitted for his privacy) to the
Lord. They wrote him this letter, which they read to him in front of the
church. It floored me. It was so sweet and personal and profound. They have
graciously allowed me to share it with you.
I love the way their letter
highlights the goodness of God, their son's personality and the individualized
instruction they desire to give him in the Lord. It is precious to me that they
want to be careful not to fit him into a predetermined mold or even create a
carbon copy of themselves, but rather grow someone who's faith is vibrant in
the Lord in the context of the person God made him to be. I believe this captures
much of what Proverbs 22:6 is talking about, and in a very beautiful way:
Train up a child in the way he
should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.
I hope you enjoy the letter as I
have. I know I will be praying many parts of it for Gavin...in the context of
who God has created him to be.
(For a bit of background: in our
church, we treat dedication as more of a commitment on the part of the parents
and church family to love and guide the child in the way of the Lord, rather
than as a guarantee of the child's right-standing with God. We believe when the
child is older, they still must choose for themselves whether to follow the
Lord.)
Oh, and notice the love tags in the first line. Love
them!
Dear Son,
You are our silly goose, our
cuddly bear, our wild monkey, our little rascal, and we love you more than we
could have ever imagined. You are a perfect gift to us. You bring us happiness.
We are blessed everyday by your enormous smiles and sweet giggles. Your joyful
personality attracts everybody. We are encouraged and in awe of your carefree
spirit. You make us laugh all the time! We love watching you enjoy life, from
jumping at the playgrounds, splashing in the pool, kicking soccer balls,
sharing a spoon at the yogurt shop, popping water balloons in your face, to
letting the world know whenever you spot a bulldozer. The list could go
on, but life though your eyes is pure joy.
From the day you were born, we’ve
felt enormous commitment and responsibility to make your world safe, beautiful,
and happy.
Spending time with you clears
our mind to see past the stress and worries in our life.
God knew just right person for
us.
Now that you’re two, our focus
as parents shifts from just meeting your basic needs to being intentional about
how we raise you. We’re committed to creating an environment free of fear,
where you can make mistakes and try new things and find out how to be fully
you.
We want to teach you that everyone
is valued and loved and we treat everyone with kindness and respect.
We’re committed to having fun together as a family.
We’re committed to giving you
opportunities to find your passions and to teach you about the love of Jesus.
Every step of this life seems impossible without trusting that God is in
control of your life.
Your family and community of
friends will have a lasting impact on your life. Our family will always love
and support you (even though some live far away), and you are also blessed to
have a strong family-like community nearby. We will continue to surround you
with those who model Jesus’ love. Our hope is that our family and our community
of friends will be a safe place for you. We will be your mentors. We will
support and guide you, and live as examples for you.
And lastly, we
dream that you will know joy and happiness. That you will want to help others
and join in God’s work to make this world a better place. We dream that you
will discover and say “yes” to the person that God has made you to be. We dream
that our family will continue to grow together and that you will always feel
the same closeness and tangible love that you experience now.
With love,
Daddy and Mommy
