(Picture was taken soon after the dedication ceremony on 12.2.2012. We are still waiting on our family picture to share.)
On December 2nd, we finally were able to stand in front of our church to demonstrate our commitment to raise our most precious gifts to know and honor God according to His Word and will, and until they are able to make personal decisions to follow Him. Following the gift of eternal life, I'm a believer that children ARE the most precious gift God has given us. I don't want to imply that our ability to have children is the gift, but yet children in this world are our most precious gift -- be it through blood or whatever means, their mere presence in this world is the most precious gift.
Before children came along, Adam and I made promises to God. So we've wanted to make this commitment publicly for a long while. Since Vanessa arrived, we found it challenging to find a church home. But God kept bringing us back to Northwest Bible. I'm not even certain He plans for us to stay there for the long haul, but we have finally surrendered and accepted that God has purposely put us there for now.
We hope and pray Vanessa and Zane fully understand one day just how important December 2, 2012 is to us and to them. Pastor Ken presented each of the children with a letter that they can reference later, reminding them of the special day and of our hopes and dreams for them. I've included here the most treasured parts of the letter:
"Dear Vanessa [and Zane]…
… Although you are too young to understand it now, Sunday was a very special day in your life… Your mother and father…came to show that they had given you to the Lord, to be used of Him in whatever way He chooses…
… Nothing in your life is as important as knowing that you are a child of God…
…I am writing this letter with hopes that your parents will keep it for you to read when you are older. What happened on Sunday has given you a wonderful foundation for a life that brings glory to God. He has a very beautiful plan for your life; and it is my prayer, along with your parents, that as you grow up you will follow Him with all of your heart!"
~Pastor Ken Harrell
(1st Sidebar: Thinking of tragic, crushing and incomprehensible events and situations, especially involving children,
leaves us emotionally confused and distraught. God doesn't intend for
us to be in such a state. A few short words cannot do justice, but our
pastor did an amazing job sharing a message on the perspective to hold
and direction for handling such tragedy involving our most precious
gifts, like the one at Shady Hook Elementary. Check it out here: A Message from Pastor's Heart.
If you decide to listen, set aside 30-45 minutes. You need to hear the
whole message, not just bits and pieces. I have to rely some on the disciples of God with understanding beyond me to help me put the pieces together. )
(2nd Sidebar: At the point of almost every new year, I think about the things I want to try harder on. I discovered that my success rate is much better when I don't make hard-and-fast resolutions. One of the things always at the forefront of my thinking is praying more for others. I want to make prayer a part of our daily events. Some days I'm better than others. The two types we are almost always certain to get in are before eating and bedtime. We also pray before school. And Vanessa reminded me the day we forgot. Anyway, at my moms' group this month, we were gifted a card with thirty-one biblical virtues to pray for our children. Those can be found here: 31 Biblical Virtues to Pray for Your Children I recently realized that I often get caught up in the organizing of my prayers, and as a result, the task can be put off or I end up leaving out some of all I want to say. :) This card helps to direct at least 31 things I want to pray for my children, so I'm sharing the resource in case it might be helpful in directing others too.)
