What is distinctive about dedicating a child to God? The key elements are seen in the first case recorded at length, Samuel, and then throughout the Bible.

 

When Samuel was born the country was in a pickle.  Organised religion was no great help.  They were making people’s lives a misery.

 

Samuel’s mother started as a farmer’s wife who couldn’t have children.  She was heart-sick and presented her case to God.  It wasn’t too long before she was pregnant and she was so thrilled that she dedicated Samuel to God.  This involved three things:

 

Opportunity

Samuel, although the little tyke didn’t know it, had just entered a zone of opportunity.  He would be able to see a working model of godly parents and he would be able to hear how God has worked in history.

 

Nothing magic was happening –  not to Samuel, nor to Evie today.  But Evie now has an unequalled opportunity to see and hear how Christian faith works.

 

Choice

The day came when Samuel had a choice to make.  It had taken time to learn what God’s call sounded like.  Once he’d got that sorted out he was able to make an intelligent decision to follow God’s leading.  God calls us all – sometimes he will use a defining, personal experience to get our attention.

 

Samuel chose to answer with trust.  By then he knew enough of God’s track record to allow him uninhibited access to his life.

 

Despite all the opportunity he received in life nothing was foisted on Samuel.  And nothing will be foisted on Evie either.  She will have to make her own choice in her own time.

 

Hope

There was a dire lack of leadership in the society in which Samuel was growing up.  He himself was to become the person to whom people looked to for help and guidance.  That is what we pray for Evie too.  Maybe she will help us in our national pickle.  That takes some doing – but it is well possible once she has made that decision to follow God.  Then she can be his agent for forgiveness – modelled and supremely provided for by Christ himself.

 

Bringing children into the world is some kind of statement about the future – that life is not pointless and the future is not horrid.  But we do not just pray that Evie will have a nice life.  We would love her to be one of those people that people look to.