WHY CHILD DEDICATION?

REQUEST REMINDER FOR THE NEXT CHILD DEDICATION
As a parent, you are the most important influence in your child’s life. But you’re not the only influence your child needs. That’s where your church family comes in. Child Dedication is an opportunity to invite others to develop and influence your child as they grow in their faith. It can relieve a lot of parenting pressure because you get to partner with people who will love and lead your child well.

Your children didn’t begin following Jesus by accident. When you dedicate your child, you’re deciding that you’ll raise your children knowing who Jesus is. Check out what Deuteronomy 6:4-7 NLT says about this: 

4 “Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. 5 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. 6 And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. 7 Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.

We love God with everything in us, and we model that for our children because we know that our example is far more powerful than our words. We teach our children what it looks like to follow Jesus. And we talk about it and think about it often. 

Leading children to live like Jesus isn’t a checkbox on a parenting to-do list. It’s an intentional, ongoing conversation that shapes who they are now and who they’re becoming. 

If you would like a reminder when the first Child Dedication is scheduled for 2025, click the REMINDER button above.

_____________

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

DOES MY CHILD NEED TO BE DEDICATED TO BE CHRISTIAN?

Child Dedication is a great step for your family, but it’s certainly not the same thing as salvation. Salvation is what happens when your child decides to start a relationship with God, and baptism is when they decide to go public with their faith. 

Child Dedication is less about your child’s choice now and more about setting them up for those choices later. When you dedicate your child, you’re committing to raise them in an environment where they hear about Jesus and have an opportunity to believe in Him. It’s a great practice, but it is optional. 

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT CHILD DEDICATION?

Child Dedication is a great next step for your whole family. When you dedicate your child, you’re choosing to make some parenting decisions that honor God, like finding trusted relationships through a small group, modeling what it looks like to be a servant, and showing your children an example of what a generous life looks like. And while it sounds like you’ve got more things to do, you’re actually lightening the load because you’re committing to do these things in partnership with the church. 

WHEN CAN YOU DEDICATE YOUR CHILD?

That’s your decision. You can dedicate your child whether they’re three days old or 13 years old. The age doesn’t matter as much as the principle.

Child Dedication is an important step in your family’s faith life because it’s setting a foundation that your family will be known for following Christ. So, consider choosing a family verse, picking family values, or finding friends that will help you grow in these values and become the people God has called you to be. 

Parenting doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. Let’s parent together trusting that with multiple voices and collective influence, our children will be trained up in the right ways they should go.