Happy birthday, Beau!
I started this blog over a year ago - the day after we saw the sonogram and discovered that the Lord had blessed us with a son. I have thought a lot about what I wanted to say that day, and I have realized that you can never say enough to completely express everything you want to communicate. (I'm still a recovering perfectionist.)
Psalm 127:3 Children are a gift from the Lord;
they are a reward from him.
4 Children born to a young man
are like arrows in a warrior's hands.
they are a reward from him.
4 Children born to a young man
are like arrows in a warrior's hands.
As I think about Beau's wonderful life, I realize that I am a steward, and God is his owner. By the Lord's grace, I will do all that I can to propel him to eternal life. While I would like to think that I can push him or pull him to seek the Lord, I realize that really I need to be an agent of God as He fosters an internal desire with Beau to seek Christ. This internal "spiritual gravity" is what will ultimately guide him. My goal is to aim this "arrow" in the direction that the Lord desires for his life, and I trust that the Lord will control his trajectory. I pray that the Lord will use me to teach Beau the two greatest commands at an early age - that He will be devoted to loving God with all of his heart, soul, mind, and strength and that his love for people would be genuine, obvious, and generous.
I pray that the Lord will use this "arrow" to advance the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ and to strike a heavy blow to the kingdom of darkness. I pray that Beau will be used to extend Christ's ministry:
Isaiah 61:1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,
the oil of joy instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.
because the LORD has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,
the oil of joy instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.
I pray that he will I pray that Beau will be a fisher of men, like His Savior. I pray that He will boldly proclaim the wonderful Message of Mercy and Grace through Faith in Christ:
Romans 10:13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." 14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15 And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"
Heavenly Father, we continue to dedicate this boy to you. Over and over, we give him back to you. Daily, we want to take him for our own, but he is yours. Lord, please grow him and use him for your glory. Lord, please lead him to love you and follow you from an early age. Lord, it's all grace; thank you for the opportunity to love Beau and walk with Him. I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
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