I went to a baby shower a year or so ago where the woman hosting did some encouraging Bible readings and songs. It was wonderful and I kept thinking, "why have I never seen this done before?!?!" I recently had the opportunity of sharing some readings at a baby shower myself and the other women had a similar reaction to mine. I hope these thoughts will be an encouragement to you today.
Thank you for joining us as we celebrate ___________ becoming a mother, and her
child, a gift from the Lord. I wanted to read a little from the Bible
and talk about this new little soul that will be joining us soon. There
is so much encouragement, wisdom and knowledge to be found in the
scriptures, and when it comes to becoming a parent, I think those of us
who have experienced it will heartily agree that we desperately need
God’s encouragement, wisdom and knowledge as we take on such a
responsibility.
James 1:5 - God gives wisdom liberally and without reproach to all who ask
Charles Dickens - “It is no small thing, when they, who are so fresh from God, love us. ”
Babies are more than just cute and cuddly little dolls
They are created in God’s image - Genesis 1:27 - “So God created man in His
own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He
created them.”
They have been created for God’s own glory - Isaiah 43:7 -
“Everyone who is called by My name, Whom I have created for My glory; I
have formed him, yes, I have made him.”
Jeremiah 1:5 - “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.”
Our children are SOULS that belong to God that we give right back to Him.
In
1 Samuel when Hannah prayed for a child, she made a vow to the Lord and
promised, “O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction
of Your maidservant... but will give Your maidservant a male child, then
I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life...” Hannah gave
Samuel to God to serve in the temple, but the reality for us, is that
our children are a heritage from the Lord, and as their parents, we must
devote them to God.
And isn’t it so with all of our blessings from God?
All of the
are things that we have are things that He created. They belong to God
and we are entrusted with their care for a time.
As a parent, it
is our job to diligently teach our children about God.
Deut.
6:1-9 - "These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, 2 so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life. 3 Hear, Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you.
4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress
them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when
you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates."
We do this by reading the Bible to them, and sharing God’s
teachings
Isaiah 28:9-10 - “To whom will he teach knowledge, and to whom will
he explain the message? Those who are weaned from the milk, those taken
from the breast?
For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.”
And it is never too early to start -
“Yet you are he who took me
from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother's breasts. On you was
I cast from my birth, and from my mother's womb you have been my God.”
(Psalm 22:9)
We also do this by the way we live. With babies and young children
especially, it is our job to reflect God for them while they come to
understand God for themselves. I believe this is the most challenging
part of being a parent - accurately reflecting the character of God for
my children in the way I behave and the words I say. Having God’s word
written all over MY heart first, so I can know and understand God as I
teach my children. And this is so important because it is from their
parents that children first learn trust, obedience, love, honor, and
respect... all things they will need to know in order to choose to
follow God.
It might take a while for the weight this awesome responsibility to
really sink in. And very soon you will realize that you have messed
up. Because we all mess up this job of parenting. You will grieve for
your mistakes, but I hope in that moment you will realize that we can’t
perfectly parent our CHILD’s way into heaven. As much as we want it and
try our hardest to do the job well, God allows each person the choice
to love Him or reject Him.
And so we pray for you, Stacy, as you take
on this weighty responsibility with this little soul. But we also pray
for this baby boy, that he will have a heart for the Lord. We pray
that he will choose to love, obey, trust, and honor God. Ultimately,
this is THE ONLY THING. Of all of the “great things” this little baby
boy may do one day in this world, the only thing that really matters is
that he has eternity in his heart and that he chooses to follow the
Lord. We pray that he will have a heart like David who said in Psalm
119:30-33 -
"I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I set your rules before me.
I cling to your testimonies, O LORD; let me not be put to shame!
I will run in the way of your commandments when you enlarge my heart!"
Jesus
gave His life for you and for me, and also for this baby boy. Enjoy
these days of purity and perfect innocence. Just as Mary did with baby
Jesus, treasure the things that he does in your heart, but be thankful
that God has made a way for him to be with Him some day. The rest of us
here today do not bear the same weight of responsibility as a parent,
but we are here to encourage you and help you and your baby boy along
the way.
Sing - “I Need Thee Every Hour” and “Because He Lives”
Malachi
2:15 says, talking about a husband and wife, “Did He not make them one,
with a portion of the Spirit in their union? And what was the one God
seeking? Godly offspring.”
Psalm 127:3 - “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord”
Jesus
loved little children. In Matthew 19 he welcomed and blessed them
saying, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for
of such is the kingdom of heaven.”
This baby is a good and perfect gift from the Lord, and we thank God for His goodness, mercy, and love in sending such a gift. We praise God for the gift of motherhood because as it says in Psalm 113:9 - "He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children. Praise the Lord!"
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