A friend contacted me recently over a challenge she’d received from a hostess for an upcoming baby shower. A questionnaire had been sent for her to fill out and returned as a gift for the coming child. The papers would be placed in a box to be opened when the child became a young adult. She had no idea what to write and asked if I’d fill in the blanks. I knew right away the things I would hope for any child, but it made me curious.
How many different answers could we come up with for each of these hopes?
I hope you…
I hope you become….
I hope you get…
I hope you never forget…
I hope you ignore…
I hope you will grow in…
The list brought Deuteronomy 6:5-7 to mind; a high calling for all of us. Our hopes for our children have much to do with lighting the way along dark paths and through valleys of death in a fallen world.
Oh, dear ones —
I hope you love Jesus.
I hope you become a Christian, a whole-hearted believer who will follow Jesus all the days of your life. For then, you will be blessed no matter what trials you face – and you will face many.
I hope you strive for a good education with truth-filled teaching and you will develop a deep hunger and love for God’s Word.
I hope you ignore all the lies the world spreads about God, and know you are His unique creation and very precious to Him. He sent His only Son to die for you so that you could have a personal, everlasting relationship with the Lord, your Father in heaven.
I hope you will grow in wisdom and discernment, for then you will be able to forgive others and come alongside those who desperately need the love of God you have to offer.
Those are my hope for you, now and always.