It was my Hannah moment.
A few months ago we dedicated our daughter to the Lord. It was a celebration for the miracle God bestowed on us. A ceremony to include those we love, who prayed for us.
A time to return to the Lord in praise and give back to Him what was already His.
The pastors gathered around and laid hands on us, a family of three.
The moments I had begged for a miracle. The times I had to cling to the promises of God. They were just as important as this moment of dedication.
Really, they were all moments of dedication.
Me becoming more of His, giving Him what IS His. Not striving or searching or longing. But becoming. The gift of His faith to my heart. This is dedication.
Dedication can feel like more pressure, but really it’s just love expressed for others to see.
God doesn’t ask me to strive to be more dedicated. He doesn’t ask for perfection. That’s His role. He simply asks for my devotion.
With Jesus, it’s all about love. Love Him. Love others.
It’s about falling in love and that shouldn’t be work. And synonymously, my dedication to Him looks like commitment, wholehearted & single-minded love.
There was a time during the ceremony when one of the pastors asked the audience to extend their arms in support of us, agreeing to love us, pray for us, and help us raise our daughter.
We need that. We all need that help in our dedication, don’t we?
When we dedicate ourselves and the thing we love the most to the Lord, we need help. We need community and love and support from those we know and sometimes those we don’t. And I need to be that support for someone else, too.
I’m dedicating myself to raise Gabrielle to be the Heroine of the Good News, just like her name means. I’m dedicating my time to no longer be mine. I’m asking the Lord to grant me an abundance of spiritual wisdom, patience and grace to become the woman He knows I can be and the mother Gabrielle needs.
What are you dedicating to the Lord this year?
So sweet. I know the joy and happiness you feel with the miracle of that sweet baby girl and her dedication. Thank you for sharing it with us.
As my pastor says, I love baby dedications – they are right up there with weddings and baptisms for me. 🙂 Congratulations!
That is a beautiful feeling. The love and support of family and friends is so important in raising a child up to serve and love the Lord. It takes an ‘army’ of God-minded individuals to encourage, protect and teach a child.
Blessings!
What a special story! Great pictures too! Thank you for sharing your testimony!
Beautiful pictures! Beautiful baby Gabrielle! Thanks so much for sharing what a wonderful experience!
The joy is so evident in the pictures. We struggled with infertility so after 9 years our dedication of my daughter was a God-moment. I’ve had the privilege of writing my grandchildren’s dedication ceremonies. The memories from this special day will be in your heart as you continually give your sweet daughter to God and His work.
Praise God for His faithfulness to us. I pray that our hearts will continue to remain dedicated to Christ and becoming what He wants us to be. I’ve been trusting God these past couple of years for my life plan and I know He has His hands in my life, molding and setting things into motion! Gabrielle is beautiful and I pray that she continues to grow in God’s love.
Congratulations! We don’t see too many of these ceremonies any more. And what a shame. I was dedicated the first time I was taken to Church (about 6 weeks old) and having been told about it and taught what it meant, I treasured the fact that I had been dedicated to God and I have lived for him all my life. Not that I haven’t made mistakes and strayed on occasion, but His love always drew me back to His arms. And I attribute some of that to the fact that I was dedicated sincerely to Him as a babe. All 4 of my children went thru the same process on their 1st visit to God’s House. Today one son is a worship leader ( for about 20 years at different churches) 1 son has His own Church and both daughters love and live for God altho they are not employed by the Church. I am so thankful for the Hand of God on my life and the lives of our children and I’m thankful my parents had the wisdom to dedicate me and us, ours. Praise God for His blessings and mercy.
We are so proud of Mr. And Mrs. Barry Bryant. Thank you for sharing this very special day!
“God doesn’t ask me to strive to be more dedicated. He doesn’t ask for perfection. That’s His role. He simply asks for my devotion.”
Love this.
Love watching you love being a mama, Steph. Just beautiful beautiful photos here.
Beautiful, love the photos:)
Loved the photos. I know it was a special moment for you and your entire family.
What am I dedicating to God this year.. patience to deal with an aging parent that moved into assisted living; more time for God & the Bible .
God Bless! 🙂