Riley's Dedication

What a great day! We had Riley's dedication ceremony this afternoon. It was AWESOME. Of course I was unable to read my part, do to uncontrolable emotions. In runs in my family :) After the dedication at Mars Hill we all went back to our house for a light dinner and cake. We actually turned our garage into a playroom for the kids. We had 15 kids there and 22 adults. Wow! There's no way we could have pulled it off without the garage. It was so nice to be reminded of all of our family and friends who regularly pray and care for us.

For those of you who weren't able to be with us, here's the dedication we wrote to our precious little Riley:

Dear Riley,
Today we dedicate you to God before our friends and family. Before you were born, we thought our hearts couldn’t possibly love anymore. How could we possibly share our attention, love and affection with another child. We were full. But on the day your were born we were proven wrong. Our love grew more than we knew was possible. It was immediate and overflowing. God loves you just the same, even more. The depths of his love are endless for you. We pray that you know this love for the rest of your life.

You have been such an amazing gift to us. It’s hard for us to realize that is what you are, a gift. You are God’s child that was given to us as a gift to raise. We promise as parents we will do our best to raise you in a loving, safe home with unconditional love and support. In the coming years we will make mistakes and so will you. But no matter what the future holds, or paths you take we will always love you no matter what. The apostle Paul says there is nothing we can do to separate us from the love of Christ. In the same way there is nothing you can do to separate our love from you. We love you exactly the way God mad you. Your uniqueness is becoming more and more apparent everyday. It’s so obvious that you love to be alive in the way you are quick to smile, laugh and quick to wake up from your naps. We love the way you insist on being involved in what the family is doing. You don’t miss anything. It’s hard to believe that we have only known you for seven months, we already can’t remember life without you.

More than anything we want you to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Deuteronomy 6 : 5–7 says: “And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are away on a journey, when you are lying down and when you are getting up again.” We will do our best to model after Him daily so you can learn of Him through us. We promise to stay committed to each other no matter what. You never have to worry about Mom and Dad’s love for each other or our love for you. You are so precious to us.
Love,
Mom & Dad