The Blessing & Celebrating Our Child’s Born Again Birthday’s

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When I was growing up, my mother read a book by Dr. John Trent titled, LifeMapping. In this book, she read a story of how a woman was deeply motivated and inspired by something so simple, but so personal. She was inspired by the…

words spoken to her by someone who noticed her.

Words.

With them we can bless or we can curse. We can build up or we can tear down. We can encourage or we can discourage. We can criticize or we can compliment. We can nick-pick or we can applaud. My mother read that book, as she was a young mother, and learned even more how she wanted to raise her own children. My sister and I were spoken to with words of blessing. Affirmation. Our mother and father spoke “blessing” over our life in how they encouraged us.

So, how did this translate into my own mothering? What did I do for my own children?

The same.

Spoke the blessing before there was ever “The Blessing” – a wonderful book written by Dr. John Trent. Once my children received Christ as their Lord and Savior, their Born Again Birthdays were a big, no, … HUGE celebration in our home! On their Born Again Birthdays, was when they received a new devotional book or bible study, a new CD or DVD that would encourage their next year of walking with the Lord. We would bake a cake, invite family and just celebrate the most CELEBRATED day of the year for them … the day they became a Christian.

This yearly celebration became something that we looked forward to because we truly took that one day of the year to review the year before, and to see what new things they would want to know and experience in their own spiritual development. This, for me, was when God opened doors for writing about a child’s spiritual development because as their mother, I was digging deep often in just how to be the spiritual mentor to them that I knew God had called me to be – So, the Lord began to also open doors of writing for Tyndale House, Harvest House, Focus on the Family and Zondervan, being able to share all that I was learning from Scripture, personal experiences and passing on stories of how to help your child gradually begin to understand the wonders of God!

When we make much of our children when they make the most important decision of their life, and that is to be a follower of Christ, and we embrace it with so much intentionality as parents and we celebrate their decision year after year with them, we are “walking in the Blessing” in front of them! And the cool thing is … they are walking IN the BLESSING with us!

Parents, let’s keep this in mind … our children count on us to show them Christ’s love, and teach them what it looks like to be a follower of Christ. As they grow up spiritually, we get to be a part of that “growing up in the wisdom and stature of the Lord” by intentionally walking out our own faith before them. And when they do pray to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior, we not only begin on a path with them as their spiritual hero, helping them know how to experience their own walk of Faith, but we also are now their brother or sister in Christ. So, CELEBRATE their born-again birthday year after year, and find those resources that will help them mature in their faith.

Being a parent is such an exciting and wonderful privilege and as the Family Ministry Associate here among our faith family of First Baptist Church Madison in Madison, MS, if there are any questions you may have in just how to have a family that not just survives, but thrives….then I’d love to hear from you! You can reach me at lrippy@fbcmadison.org with any thoughts or questions you may have!

Be Inspired,

Lisa

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2 Comments

  1. Shawn Sonnentag on August 30, 2018 at 1:37 pm

    Such a wonderful write-up. And the photo of the two children is so captivating. The photo popped up in a Google search I did when looking for a particular song. I just love the photo. Keep up the great and inspirational work.

    • Lisa Rippy on August 31, 2018 at 1:28 pm

      Thank you Shawn!!

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