sidenote: Big thanks to Christina at “To Show Them Jesus” for her kind words and review of my book!! Be sure to check out her blog on a variety of topics as she journeys through parenting her children toward Jesus!
“The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: ‘The Lord bless you 
and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.’ So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.” – Numbers 6:22-27
This past Sunday we were reminded of the importance to “Bless” our children. Not simply saying “bless you!” after they sneeze, although our 2 year old LOVES to fake sneeze about 5 times afterward, simply to continue receiving blessings. 🙂 But this concept of speaking out loud a specific, and biblical blessing over our children on a regular basis.
When we first purchased a small Bible for each of our daughters, we selected specific verses for each one of them. We pray soo many things for each of our daughters, but wanted them to know this prayer had been specifically chosen for them. If this sounds like something you’d want to do, I would point you toward Proverbs 3, which is full of great verses to pray for our children. But there is a difference between a prayer and a blessing. A prayer lifts your child up to God. A blessing joins with God in giving something to your child.
The thing that stuck with me from our conversation this past Sunday, was from verse 27 above. That this speaking a blessing over someone, is connected to how God’s “name” will be put on them. We don’t think too much about “naming” our children after we’ve filled out all the proper paperwork at the hospital. We write, with trembling hands, hoping we don’t spell something wrong and leave our child forever scarred with a name like “Rubby”. But the truth is, throughout scripture the word “Name” is very closely related to the word “Nature”.
There are all sorts of “names” that the world attempts to put on our children. News reports about the next generation and what “they WILL be like”. Brands that target our children on every cereal box, toy ad, and commercial around. Concepts being ingrained in their subconscious even by “names” like Disney and Barbie.
But we are called as parent to not sit passively as our children are labeled with names from all sorts of sources. We are called to actively speak God’s name (nature) over their lives, and establish their roots firmly as children of God. It also causes us to recognize what we are allowing to name us as parents. We are not named by our past, or what we’ve done so far – both in parenting and in life overall. We are being renamed as “New Creations” in Christ on a daily basis, and called to lead our children humbly and confidently as they receive the name (nature) God is offering to them as well…
words from wick 
Love it! Needed to read this today:)