Deuteronomy 6:5-9

This coming Sunday Jackson will take part in a baby dedication ceremony at church. This is where we, as his parents, will present him before the church, stating our intentions to raise him knowing and loving The Lord. In preparation for taking this step with him, Dan and I attended a class last Sunday before service called "Faith Beginnings" - it was just an hour long, but it was amazing, causing my passion for doing all that is right for Jackson to grow even bigger. 


We talked about parenting as one flesh, about putting our relationship as husband and wife above that of mom and dad. We talked about our role as his parents in his faith-filled upbringing, what our role is and how that role changes over time.  We talked about how the most important part of this role is that bringing Jackson to church with us every Sunday is not enough. Sending him to bible school and Sunday school is not enough. Rather, we must take those seeds that are planted each week and nurture them. We must feed them and water them continuously, creating teachable moments so that his faith is built on the strongest foundation possible. 


This idea can most easily be seen in the bible in Deuteronomy 6:5-9
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be taken upon your hearts. Impress them upon your children. Talk about them when you sit at home or when you walk along the road, when you lie down, and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your head and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates."


I love that verse. I love the image it brings to my mind- of a loving home where all that is said and all that is done is in complete alignment with what God desires. A home where the parents flawlessly flow their faith and love to their children. That is what Dan and I want. We want to be those faithful pillars for Jackson, to give to him the greatest possible gift, the gift of a relationship with God. It is also, in my opinion, the hardest gift to give. One made increasingly difficult in a world that is standing on the shakiest of spiritual soil and where every where Jackson will turn he will face people, actions and events that will test his faith. 


Therefore, as my little man's 1st birthday is quickly approaching I am taking it upon myself to begin focusing on diving even deeper into my own faith, for I know in my heart that mine and Dan's example will be the absolute number one influencer for Jackson's own faith and there is no such thing as 'starting too young.' To document all that I learn in my quest for knowledge I will be documenting on these pages my journey, the things I learn in the books and articles I read, the creative ways I come up with on how to immerse our home and lives in the word of God and lastly, I will also pose the questions that come to mind when I come up against a wall and need God's direction and your help. 


Each time I work towards this goal by writing about it I will then store the posting on the top of my blog under the "Faith Beginnings" page.