Jacob's Dedication

Sunday was Jacob's big day to be dedicated at our church.  We believe in "believer's baptism" which means that someone should choose to be baptized once he or she has made the conscious decision to give their life to Christ.  Our church does however hold a brief dedication ceremony for newborns where we as parents publicly "give" our child to the Lord and promise to raise him within the church in hopes that he will follow Jesus.  In turn, the church pledges to support us and also help in his spiritual growth.  We have been so blessed with Jacob and we are thankful that God has entrusted him to us while he is on this earth.  Sunday was a beautiful time to acknowledge these things in front of friends and family.

Jacob slept through the entire dedication and did well for most of the service.  There were a few moments when he cried, but he pulled it together quickly and we were able to keep him in the service with us.  Usually we leave him in the nursery.

 Sweet baby

 This little stinker on the other hand...

He looks like an absolute angel in this picture, but it's the only one {out of about 20} where you can see him and see his face.  The rest of the time he was on the floor, on the alter, crawling on the stairs... you get the idea.  I'm hoping he grows up a lot in the next year before we start bringing him into worship with us.  He was all over the place.  I was so thankful that Joel, our preacher, encouraged me before the service to just not worry about whatever Miller did during the dedication.  He reminded me that this was about Jacob and I could either spend the whole time worrying what other people thought and trying to discipline Miller or I could focus on the moment and the covenant we were making before God.  It takes a lot of pressure off to have the preacher tell you your kid can act like a hooligan in the sanctuary and it will be ok ;)  Thankfully he didn't do anything too crazy, but he wasn't the perfect angel you'd hope he'd be in a moment like that.

We were so thankful to have so many members of our family with us  for this special day.

After church, we went to my in-laws' house for lunch.  Margaret was so sweet to let us have lunch there since our rental house isn't exactly equipped for feeding a dozen people.

 The guest of honor had his lunch first.

We tried to have a mini photo-shoot of Jacob in his gown.  This gown has been worn by many Mastins including Jacob's grandfather {Papa Frank}, daddy, and big brother.  It is such a sweet family heirloom that I hope my grandchildren can wear someday too.

My sweet Jacob, we have spent so much time in prayer, and will continue to do so, asking God to help us be faithful stewards of the most precious earthly gift we could ever receive.  The gift of you. We love you so very much, but know that the Lord loves you more than we can even imagine.  We pray that you will come to know this great love and the unbelievable grace that has been bestowed upon you.  It is our hope that your life will bring honor and glory to God and that you will follow His will for your life.  Not yours.  Not ours.  His.  We promise to do all we can to show you the love of Christ and point you back to your creator.

I'd say He did a pretty magnificent job when he made you.