Congratulation on your interest in Child Dedication! Our hope is that the following information will help you to better understand the Biblical principles of baby and child dedication, and your role as the parent in the life of a child that has been dedicated to Him!

In today’s culture, people dedicate all sorts of things to a vast array of entities and causes. Athletes dedicate victories to a child in the hospital; musicians dedicate albums to mentors who inspired their careers; authors dedicate books to a member of the family; television shows dedicate episodes to company employees who recently passed away. In the Bible, most dedications were between people and the Lord God. Individuals both from all social standings and castes systems dedicated the likes of buildings, animals, battles and their spoils, harvests, and even cities. In several cases, people even dedicated their children’s lives to the Lord.

One of the most prolific accounts of the dedication of a child involves the boy Samuel who later became a prophet to the nation of Israel.

• “And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a three- year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and she brought him to the house of the LORD at Shiloh. And the child was young. 25 Then they slaughtered the bull, and they brought the child to Eli. 26 And she said, ‘Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the LORD. 27 For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition that I made to him. 28 Therefore I have lent him to the LORD. As long as he lives, he is lent to the LORD.’ And he worshiped the LORD there” (1 Samuel 1:24-28).

As you consider dedicating your child to the Lord, you are doing something very sacred, very beautiful, and very powerful. This is more than a special Sunday and to wear a special outfit, take pictures and gather with family for a meal. Child Dedication changes things. It sets some things into motion. It has attached responsibility. It is not something to be entered into lightly. You are making some specific promises (vows) that you should be aware of.

Summing Up Child Dedication: simply put, as you dedicate your child, you will stand before God, pastor, church family, friends and witnesses and promise to raise your child in a way that will allow their life to be consecrated unto God for His plans and purposes in their life. You are committing your life to making sure that you use every possible resource to lead your child into a relationship with Jesus, and that their lives will be led in a way that they can discover their talents and callings and use them for Him. Child dedication is a serious vow that will require a great deal of commitment and effort on your part. It is not a shallow ceremony that just anyone should participate in.

Components Of Any Dedication

1. A DECLARATION

In many cases, the spoken Word is a necessary and very powerful gateway to the next horizon. Without it you are stuck. But with it, you are propelled forward into the great things that lie beyond! You are not married until you say “I do.” You own nothing until the auctioneers says, “Sold!” Release of the accused does not happen until the judge proclaims “innocent.” And nothing can be dedicated to the Lord with our a declaration! In order for Samuel to be dedicated to the Lord, his mother needed to make the proclamation. Until then, he a was another child living in Israel.

A spoken declaration opens the door to possibilities and destiny that aren’t otherwise possible. Likewise, dedication is exceptionally powerful. Consider the impact of the dedication of the Temple Solomon built:

• “When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the LORD. And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled his temple” (1 Kings 8:10-11).

Dedication of your child to the Lord affirms that the doors are open for Him to do amazing things in and thorough your child’s life! Your declaration, which will be recited by you during the Child Dedication Ceremony is as follows:

This day, I dedicate this child to the plans and purposes of the Lord. Jesus came to die for this child so that this child could know the Lord, be a part of His Kingdom, and glorify Him with their lives. I dedicate myself to the fulfillment of both. I will follow Jesus, so that this child will have the opportunity to follow Him as well. I will teach this child the things of God. I will raise this child in the House of God. I will help this child to begin and grow in their relationship with Jesus. Lord, I confess, I need your help. But with your help, we will succeed. Lord, this child is yours. Fulfill destiny in their lives. Draw them. Visit them. Reveal yourself to them. Bless them. Prosper them. Walk with them. Protect them. Fight for them. Fight against those that would come against them. In Jesus name, I dedicate them to you. Amen.

2. A CHANGE IN OWNERSHIP

Dedication of anything to the Lord places the thing dedicated under His ownership, purposes, provision, protection, and empowerment while releasing the dedicator to any such claim! The same is true of your child as you dedicate them to the Lord. Dedication acknowledges His ownership of their life.

Things owned by God are special. Consider the Ark of the Covenant, a piece of furniture made out of gold that was designed by the Israelites to be a part of the Temple. Ultimately, gold is nothing more than a rock dug out of the ground, but Bezaleel and Ohiliab, the creators and builders of the Ark, dug the gold out of the ground, fashioned it, and most importantly, dedicated it to the Lord. This was not ordinary furniture – it was the Lord’s!

Many years later, the Ark ended up in the house of Obed-Edom. Consider it’s supernatural impact while there:

• “He was not willing to take the ark of the LORD to be with him in the City of David. Instead, he took it aside to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. The ark of the LORD remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months, and the LORD blessed him and his entire household. Now King David was told, ‘The LORD has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because of the ark of God’” (2 Samuel 6:10-12).

Something owned by the Lord is blessed and blesses whatever it comes into contact with! Your child is no different. Dedication affirms His ownership in their lives and allows Him to use them in incredible ways.

3. A NEW PARTNERSHIP

Frequently, things dedicated to the Lord still remain in the safe keeping of the dedicator who takes on the role of a steward. This is true of persons dedicating their children to the Lord. As you dedicate your child, you are beginning a new partnership with God to see His son/daughter become all that He has destined them to be.

Fortunately, you are not left to wander in the dark trying to raise your dedicated child. The bible lays out a parents responsibility in child raising, as God intended. God lists these priorities so a faithful parent can raise their dedicated child in a way that would lead to the greatest potential for God’s best. A committed parent strives to fulfill the following calling:

1. A CALLING TO PROVIDE FOR AND PROTECT - “If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever” (1 Timothy 5:8).

2. A CALLING TO DISCIPLINE (TRAIN) FOR ALL AREAS OF LIFE – “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.) You are to train your child in a way that trains them in spiritual and worldly matters. They need to be introduced to Jesus and His Kingdom, while learning to live effectively in the Kingdom of this world” (Proverbs 22:6).

3. A CALLING TO RECOGNIZE AND DEVELOP GIFTINGS AND CALLINGS THE LORD CALLS ALL CHILDREN INTO A RELATIONSHIP WITH HIS SON JESUS - As faithful parents, we are called to assist that process by teaching our children spiritual things, the Word of God, raising them in the House of God. But it doesn’t end there. We are to raise our children in the full way they should go. They need to learn the gifts He has deposited into their lives and the specific roles He is calling them to. As parents, we are to aid our children in the discovery of these elements of life.

4. A CALLING TO MODEL LOVE FOR GOD – A child learns the Heavenly Father’s love through the experiences with earthly parents. Of greater priority than loving children, spouses are called first to love God with all their heart, strength, soul and mind and then to demonstrate their love to one another so that everyone, including children, can know see the faithful love of Jesus lived out in a covenantal relationship. “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:25). It is critical that parents live this out for their children.

5. A CALLING TO MODEL GOD’S LEADERSHIP IN FAMILY FUNCTION – God is faithful to care for a child’s upbringing though healthy family relationships, and to teach how God deals with His supernatural family in similar fashion. That is why it is critical for families with dedicated children to carefully model the proper partnership and submission in marriage as well as the appropriate training and discipline of children. It’s such a priority that it becomes a prerequisite for leadership in the local church. “He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. 5 If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church” (1 Timothy 3:4-5)? Proper family leadership allows a dedicated child to grow up in the setting in which God establishes .

With these priorities, a parent is able to properly partner with God to best see God’s divine destiny realized in the life of every dedicated child.

Conclusion:

As you move forward with dedicating your child to the purposes and plans of the Lord, may it be a special day for you, your child and your entire family. Your cause is valuable, and you can be assured, your church family will do their best to assist you in every way possible!