Yesterday I had the enormous and undeserved privilege of leading the dedication ceremony of Sofia, our tenth grandchild. It was a beautiful day in every aspect. The weather was nice, the food was great and the family and friends were enjoyable and amicable.
The highlight of the day, however, was the dedication ceremony itself. I was able to preach the Word and pray, which is the best thing in the world for me to do. My text was Psalm 127 which reads:
“Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain.
It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late,
To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep. Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth.
Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them;
They shall not be ashamed, But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.”
I pointed out the fact that God is the Keeper and Protector of our house (family). He is also our Provider and the One who brings peace and rewards to our life. Our children bring us happiness and they are our future, flying like arrows into unknown.
I love the fact that my sons always ask me to dedicate their children to God. I have told them repeatedly that this is not infant baptism, a magical ceremony or a special ritual whereby children receive benefits from God, spiritual or otherwise. A baby dedication demands a commitment from the parents and grandparents, to raise their children in the ways of the Lord and to seek his blessings.
This is the same thing that our heavenly Father expects from us. A baby dedication is meaningless if we don’t dedicate our own lives to the Lord. This is akin to what many well-meaning parents do, as they send their kids to Sunday school or to private Christian schools, but they themselves never go to church services (wedding and funerals do not count).
If you are a Christian, you need to dedicate your life to Jesus. If you are not a Christian, you need to repent of your sins and come to Jesus seeking forgiveness and salvation. You see, everyone in this world dedicates his or her life to one or more causes. While some of these causes have some merit, the majority are totally useless and irrelevant.
I encourage you to dedicate the rest of your life not to a cause, but to the Cause of all things; to Jesus, the “Author and Finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2). He is and will always be our reason for living and the ultimate purpose of our lives.
Anything else that we do in this life must never surpass, or even get close to our dedication to our Lord Jesus Christ. Remember: Whoever or whatever you dedicate your life, energy and effort to, is in fact the object of your worship. Choose today to whom you will dedicate your all. Some will choose sports, jobs, careers, family or money, but I will remain here at the feet of my Lord and Savior forever.
A. G.
