We, as Christians, have a tremendous responsibility given to us when the Lord blesses us with a child. By doing so, He entrusts us with the responsibility of raising that child in the way of the Lord and establishing early in his life, a foundation built upon Jesus Christ. It is this tremendous responsibility that causes us to think of child consecrations as “family consecrations.” We feel that the whole family needs to be lifted up to the Lord so that each member will be able to keep his or her responsibilities.
But first, what exactly is involved in “consecrating” your child to the Lord? Children are a heritage from the Lord. He gives them to us to bless us, and because of this, we must be willing to give them back to Him. We too must be willing to totally submit our children to the will of our Father. We are to do the most we can to “set apart” our children to God until the day that they can make their own choice. By consecrating your children to the Lord, you are making a vow to raise them in His ways. The following is a list of some of the things parents do as part of keeping their vows.
1. KNOW GOD’S GIFT OF LOVE: The greatest importance is to know the gift of God’s love in Jesus Christ personally as parents.
2. BE A LIVING EXAMPLE OF CHRIST TO YOUR CHILDREN: It does not do your child any good to instruct him in the way of the Lord if you yourself do not walk what you talk. Therefore, it is good for you to always be examining yourself and your witness to your children. In Proverbs 20:7 the Bible says “The righteous man leads a blameless life; blessed (happy) are his children after him.” The main reason for the blessed state of this man’s children is that they have someone to look up to and to use as an example to model their own behavior. We as parents are encouraged to strive to be that example to our children even as Christ is our example.
3. INSTRUCT YOUR CHILD IN THE WAY OF THE LORD: We are taught in Ephesians 6:4 to “bring them (your children) up in training and instruction of the Lord”. And Proverbs 22:6 adds, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not turn from it.” If we, while our children are young, instruct them in His ways, our children will grow in the ways of God for a lifetime.
4. PRAY CONSTANTLY FOR YOUR CHILD: A parent’s responsibility to pray for their child does not end at their consecration, but continues throughout the rest of their life. We see an example of this in Job 1:5…“ When a period of feasting had run its course, Job would send and have them purified. Early in the morning he would sacrifice a burnt offering for each of them, thinking, ‘Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their heart.’ This was Job’s regular custom.” And in James 5:16…”The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” The prayer of Christ-centered parents powerfully covers their children in prayer that will produce effective change for a lifetime. (AGAPE INTERNATIONAL MINISTRIES)