We dedicated Emily on May 6th at our church Christ Chapel. Dedications are not required in our faith, but it is an act of surrender that we wanted to make. I’ve been thinking about what that surrender should look like for me. I have always had a sense that Emily was God’s creation as much as she is a mix of Robby and I. In fact, my doctor gave me a compliment about the pretty baby that I had made, and I pointed out that her beauty is God’s gift. God has entrusted her to us, and it our desire is to give her back to Him.

Who can be with Emily every moment of the day? Who knows Emily’s personality before she expresses it? Who knows what will happen before it occurs? Who always hears Emily when she cries? Who knows what each cry really means? I definitely don’t and can’t.

If I want to give good gifts to Emily, what better gifts will her heavenly father give her? What can I give Emily that God has not given to me first?

We prayed and waited for Emily. In God’s timing we received our gift. We’re excited to see the gift grow and enjoy the blessing everyday. We pray that we are as big of a blessing to Emily as she is to us.

I commit to remember that Emily is a gift from God and teach her of her Heavenly Father, of the love and salvation of Jesus, and the companionship of the Holy Spirit. I pray that God will give me the strength to do this and that my friends and family will encourage me in my lifelong effort to do so.