My hopes for you, Child

Child,

I hope you always know you are loved.


Child,

I hope you do right because you believe it is right.

I hope you will love and serve others.

I hope you will love yourself as well.

I hope you will be compassionate.

I hope that the fruit of the Spirit is evident in your life:
love,
joy,
peace,
patience,
kindness,
goodness,
faithfulness,
gentleness,
self-control.


Child,

I hope you come to know and to love God.

I hope you will discover the joy and peace of an ever-growing relationship with Jesus Christ, becoming His joyful disciple.

I hope you put your faith and trust in Him and find there the peace that passes all understanding.

I hope you question everything you're told, and I hope your basis for truth is always the Bible.


Child,

I hope you fight for the Truth in all things.

I hope you have an inquisitive spirit, never afraid to dig deeper.

I hope you trust generally, but trust your heart and intuition when they sense danger.

I hope you don't always do what you're told.


Child,

I hope you work hard to achieve your goals.

I hope you will be wise, discerning, and responsible.

I hope you grow to become secure, confident, and joyful.

I hope you will honour and follow your God-given bent and always seek His guidance.


Child,

I hope you will always feel safe bringing your struggles of any sort to your parents.

I hope you will always sense our love and support and know that we are praying for you.

I hope you will have a loving and secure marriage, serving each other with mutual adoration, respect, and submission.

I hope you are blessed with children of your own to love and nurture into maturity.


Child,

I hope you look back on your childhood and smile.

I hope you enjoy and appreciate nature in all its forms.

I hope your life is filled with creativity and imagination.

I hope you will have an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, ever learning and ever putting that knowledge to practical use.


Child,

I hope you live your life always in the present, but with an eye towards Heaven.

I hope you approach life with passion and wild abandon, but find balance and serenity in life as well.


Child,

I hope that my actions towards you will always bear witness to these hopes I have for you.

"Are my everyday practices likely to help my children grow into the kind of people I'd like them to be? When we fail to examine our objectives we're left by default with practices that are intended solely to get kids to do what they're told."
Alfie Kohn, "Unconditional Parenting"

What about you? What are your hopes for your children?