Our sweet Gabrielle turns 8 today! We are excited to celebrate her life today. One of the things we love most about Gabrielle is that she loves God’s Word. She recently graduated from “Sparks” in a local Awana program. She has memorized lots of scripture. She loves our morning devotion time when I share one scripture with the cherubs for the day. She looks forward each evening to our bed-time daily reading of the “Kids Day by Day Chronological One-Year Bible“. And by His grace and Spirit, she gets it. She connects scriptures together. It makes sense to her. She loves God’s Word. May it always be so. “Then He opened their minds so they could understand the scriptures…” Luke 24:45

One evening last week as we were reading the Kids Day by Day Bible, we were reading Proverbs 30 where verse 30 reads: “…a lion, mighty among beasts who retreats before nothing…”. I paused after reading that verse and said to our cherubs, “Mommy prays you are strong in the Lord like a mighty lion.” My heart was that they are strong in the Lord, standing up for His truth and retreating before nothing when it comes to standing firm in and for Him.

After I said that, Gabrielle said, “Oh Mommy, I just want to be a lamb. God is the Lion. He is strong and He protects me. I just want to be His lamb.” Well, hush this mama’s heart. Tears filled my eyes as I kissed her head, “Yes, honey, I just want you to be be His lamb, too.”

So today, we wish our littlest lamb the happiest of birthdays! May His grace always fill her. May she always love His Word. May she be a doer of His Word and not just a hearer only. May He keep her heart, mind and body pure before Him as she lives according to His Word. May the same be true for her future husband. May He daily establish and bless the work of her heart and hands. May she abide in Him daily. May He keep her on the narrow road that leads to life. May she run this race with endurance and may she finish it well. May she seek to honor God. May He bless her relationship with Him, with family and with friends. May He keep her healthy, safe and strong. May the things of this world be distasteful to her. May she hunger and thirst for the things of God. May He always seasons her words with His grace and peace. May she bring the Gospel to all those around her. May her heart for missions continue to grow. May she love the Lord our God with all of her heart, all of her mind and all of her soul all the days of her life. This is our prayer for our littlest lamb…and her big lamb brother, too!

“My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand.
I and the Father are one.” John 10:27-30