Child dedication gift

Posted on 07. Jun, 2010 by in Fresh Ideas, Parents

Quick question for those of you in the community. I’ve got another child dedication coming up in a few weeks. In the past we’ve given out gift bibles to the kids. We pay $6-8 per Bible. I’m re-thinking this. This $6-8 Bible is not a children’s Bible, so it’s likely to sit on a shelf somewhere for a decade or more before it’s ever really used. Seems like a waste to me. I’m thinking about giving every parent the book, Revolutionary Parenting. I know that every parent wont read it, but at least I know that if they did, it would challenge them to the core of what it means to spiritually lead kids.

So, what do you give to your kids/families? If you could change what you gave (I know some have their hands tied), what would it be?

(By the way, I am kidding about the picture. For the record, I’ve never given away a precious moments gift Bible.)

Meet Kenny

Kenny Conley has written 1607 posts on CMO.

Kenny Conley is the primary author of Childrens Ministry Online and the NextGen Pastor at Gateway Church in Austin, TX. In addition to creating the Illuminate Conference, a high quality kidmin conference designed specifically for volunteers, Kenny is a published author and speaker. For more biographical info, click here.

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  • http://www.mcbickids.org Dave T

    Kenny -

    We have a photographer that comes in and takes family portraits and candid shots during the dedication. We then make an iphoto photo book for each family with the pix that they submitted for our video, the family portraits, the candid shots, the life verse, letter from the parents to their child, etc… The families have really enjoyed receiving it.

  • Emily

    Up until this year we gave out the cute little pastel colored New Testament for dedications. However, like you, I felt like this wasn’t something that was used once the family got home. In February, I gave out the Early Reader’s Bible for the first time. One family had twins, so I gave one child that Bible, and the other the Jesus Storybook Bible. I felt like even if it sits on a bookshelf a good portion of the time, at least it is something a parent might actually read to their child rather than a gift-copy of the New Testament. I love the idea of giving out Revolutionary Parenting too though!

  • http://passionatechildrensservant.blogspot.com/ Theresa Haskins

    We celebrated Baby Day yesterday! Our Children’s minister gives each family a DVD with their family slides (and background music from the Church presentation) and a copy of the following Bible:

    Day By Day Kids Bible
    By: Karyn Henley
    Tyndale Kids / 2002 / Hardcover

    I own three copies of this Bible (one for both of my girls – and one for ME!) It’s a one-year chronological Bible.
    .-= Theresa Haskins´s last blog ..When Helping Hurts Review =-.

  • Erin

    We used to give out the little gift Bibles too, and stopped for the same reason. If I could give any gift, and money were no object, I would like to give a copy of the same Bible (Read to Me Bible for Kids) that we use in the baby class and preschool classrooms at our church. We do give a 30% for the Bible at our Dedication Class. for the ceremony we give parents a personalized certificate with the child’s and parent’s name, date, etc, as well as the life verse the parents chose. We later send them copies of the pictures that were taken during/after the ceremony. I love the idea of giving Revolutionary Parenting!!

  • http://theinclusivechurch.wordpress.com/ Amy Fenton Lee

    Dawson Baptist Church in Birmingham, AL has a pretty incredible cradle care program and baby dedication celebration. In their gift baskets to expectant parents and/or new parents they include:

    Current copy of Lifeway’s ParentLife Magazine, Baby Lullaby CD, inexpensive toy (bath toy from the dollar store), inexpensive diaper bag tags (printed w/ church children’s ministry logo), Letter from the children’s minister , and ONE of the following: a bib, burp cloth or onesie with a Bible verse from Mustard Seeds Clothing.

    Mustard Seed clothing does offer wholesale pricing to churches: http://www.mustardseedsclothing.com/.

    For more on Dawson’s Cradle Care and baby dedication see: http://www.incm.org/resources_insight_1208_cradle.html
    .-= Amy Fenton Lee´s last blog ..Starting a Special Needs Ministry =-.

  • Nick

    We had our dedication three weeks ago and gave out copies of “Pastor Dad” by Mark Driscoll to the families. Even though not all the families have “Dads” who are involved, it’s a great book that both mom and dad can benefit from. Also, we print really nice Dedication Certificates that are frame worthy. They were recently redesigned for this purpose. I’ve given copies of “Revolutionary Parenting” out before, but I gave the audio edition so that it could be listed to in the car on the way to work. Also, the “Jesus Storybook” that was mentioned above is fantastic. It’s gets really good as the kids get a little bit older. This is what I’m reading to my 3 year-old daughter every night before bed. Another option is the “Read With Me Bible for Toddlers.” We’ve given out the “Read With Me Bible” and “See With Me Bible” but the one for toddlers is new.

    One final thing we’re doing is the Dedication Booklet that is required homework in preparation for the Dedication Service is printed in a really nice format so that it’s kind of a keepsake.

    Of all the things we’ve done, I love what we’re doing now. “Pastor Dad” is short but has great content. The Dedication Certificates are top notch and are a great option. We send them to Walgreens and have them printed as pictures 8×10. And the keepsake Dedication Booklet. Total cost with printing, S&H, etc. is about $12 per family.

  • Theresa Haskins

    Nick, Would you be willing to share the pdf of your dedication booklet? It sounds amazing!

    PS. I agree with providing resources for parents (since I am a parent-and raising my children to be Christ followers is my main goal, I can NEVER read enough/be reminded enough of steps to take on this journey!)! I still need to grab a copy of Revolutionary Parenting! UGH!

  • http://www.jonathancliff.com jonathan

    I stopped giving away the little pastel Bibles as well. We give away a Seeds Worship CD, the book Revolutionary Parenting, and a small teddy bear all bundled on top of the books and music.

    We have a few more copies of Revolutionary Parenting to give away, but we are going to more to the “Parenting Beyond Your Capacity” book in the future.
    .-= jonathan´s last blog ..Hiring Quality #1 // Love Your Spouse =-.

  • http://www.wcrossing.org Patti

    We just had our Child Dedication service on Mother’s Day. We have been giving out books to the parents for the past few years. A favorite has been Sacred Parenting by Gary Thomas. Another one is how Kids Raise Parents by Dan Allender- but that may be out of print.

    One of the best things we have done with our families is assign them “mentor couples” Couples who will reach out to them periodically over the course of the year. They might do a playgroup- some may do a Bible Study or study the book together. Others just may reach out and meet and sit together at church. We have a fairly large church and this has been one of the ways we can grow small as we get big.

  • http://www.grandparkway.org Susan Ripley

    We’ve done lots of different things over the years — little bibles, a flower, certificates with meaning of names. But recently, we’ve started giving parents the book “SHEPHERDING A CHILD’S HEART” by Tedd Tripp and the children’s book “LET ME HOLD YOU LONGER” by Karen Kingsbury. I’ve received good response from parents about that.

  • Theresa Haskins

    After I pondered this idea more, I went home and started back into “Parenting Beyond your Capacity” – which I picked up at Orange 10! What a FABULOUS book! I would recommend this book highly as a book to provide to parents! As a matter of fact, parents of any age! Due to this book, I am starting a YEAR of mentoring for my oldest daughter – truly an answer to prayer! If you don’t have this book, you should get it! GREAT book!

  • Nick

    Re: Theresa Haskins

    I’ll definitely share the Dedication Booklet. Shoot me an email and I’ll send it over.

    nparker@my-church.com