Baby Dedications
Baby Dedication is a special time where parents focus on the commitment they are making to raise their children to know and follow God.
At Wellspring Church, you can dedicate your child to God with the support of family, close friends, and your church. Our pastors will pray over your family in a special moment during our weekend services.
Baby Dedication is a public declaration of the parent or parents before God and man acknowledging with gratitude that the child is a gift from God. Recognizing that as parents you need God’s wisdom and help in raising your child and with His help you will do your best to set the example for this child to follow in the way of the Lord.
Baby Dedication at Wellspring is a family time when parents publicly commit themselves to abiding by biblical principles and raising their children according to God’s standards. Not only are you dedicating your child to God, but you are also dedicating yourselves as parents to God and the church. You are committing yourselves to maintaining a Christian home in which Christ is honored and the Word of God is held in reverence.
Christian parents are to do all they can to “set apart” their child to God until that child can make his or her own choice regarding a relationship with Jesus Christ. The responsibilities God has entrusted to Christian parents include continuously praying for their children (Job 1:5), instructing them in the way of the Lord (Proverbs 22:6), setting a Godly example (Proverbs 20:7), and disciplining them as the Lord would discipline us (Proverbs 29:15,17; 13:24). These responsibilities can only be fulfilled in Christ’s strength (Philippians 4:13).
If you would like to register your family for baby dedication, let us know by clicking the registration button on this page.
Common Questions
Why should I dedicate my child?
The Bible provides an example for us in that Mary and Joseph took baby Jesus to the temple to be dedicated to God. As followers of Christ, we also should want to make the public declaration to our family, and our church. It is invaluable to be able to tell your children as they are growing up that they belong to Jesus and that you have asked God to use them in a formal declaration.
Where in the Scripture does it say to dedicate your child?
Scripture does not mention anything about dedication of children; however, Hannah dedicated her son Samuel to the Lord (1 Samuel 1:27, 28). Jesus was dedicated to the Lord as a baby (Luke 2:22) and baptized as an adult (Matthew 3:13-17).
In Mark 10:11-13 we read: “People were bringing little children to Jesus to have Him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, He was indignant. He said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth; anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it’. And He took the children in His arms, put His hand on them and blessed them.” It is primarily from this passage of Scripture that we model our service of dedication and present a child to the Lord.
What is expected of me before I dedicate my child?
All parents dedicating their children to the Lord should be follwers of Jesus themselves. Parents who have not placed their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord will be unable to submit their children to God’s will and His ways, because they themselves do not know the ways of the Lord. As a result, we must decline any requests to involve an unbelieving parent in the dedication of a child. As a parent, your devotion to God—or lack of it—will make a resounding impression on your child.
Only a couple committed to Christ and married (a man and a woman) or a single parent committed to Christ and not living with someone out of wedlock may participate in the ceremony. We believe that unmarried parents living together do not set a Christ-like example. Therefore, unmarried parents will be advised to separate or wait until they are married to dedicate their child. A believing parent may dedicate a child independently of an unbelieving spouse.
Single parents who dedicate their children may not have boyfriends or girlfriends present with them on the platform. We recognize that not every parent is committed to living a Christ-centered lifestyle. However, the Pastoral staff at Wellspring will bless every child that is brought to the office for prayer.
What is expected of me after I dedicate my child?
Dedication is a pledge to cultivate a spiritual atmosphere in the home. One must never underestimate the incredible influence a parent has on the faith of their children. Infant dedication expresses the intention and faith of the parents to do everything they can to lead their child to salvation. It is a public pledge to circle the child with a positive environment that will nurture the child’s faith in God. Scripture tells us that we are to train a child in the way he should go (Proverbs 22:6). This includes meeting together regularly as Christians to spur one another onto love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:23-24). Dedication of children to God is a promise to model a Christian lifestyle to the children while worshipping with a church family regularly.
In a sense, a Christian Dedication of a child is a dedication of the parents to be godly role models. 2 Timothy 1:5 states, “When I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also.”
Is this the same as water baptism?
Baby Dedication at Wellspring does not involve baptism. We believe that baptism is meant to take place at a time when an individual makes a personal decision to follow Christ and is old enough to repent and confess Jesus publicly.