hopes and dreams, round ii

In keeping with my "this-baby-will-not-suffer-second-child-syndrome" Brent and I sat down and selected 4 traits we will begin praying over this child as she grows. We selected four specifically if it were a boy, and four if it were a girl.

Just like last time, we knew we wanted to have specific traits to pray for our daughter or son. We still pray for Blythe [Joy, Compassion, Hospitality, and Modesty*], and now will begin praying for this sweet daughter as well. Here are her four traits, and why we picked them:

Integrity

Patience

Devotion

Purity *

*I realize Blythe's list was written out in adjectives, and this list is written in nouns. We really wanted 'integrity' and there wasn't a good adjective form, so we changed the rest to nouns to be consistent…okay, I changed the rest to nouns to be consistent because to have one noun and three adjectives bothered me. 

Integrity

1. the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness

2. the state of being whole and undivided

In a society that seems it will do anything to "get ahead," being a person of integrity is important. We pray our daughter chooses to do what is right, even when it may mean not getting the promotion, or coming in last. We want her to be a person that is honest, always, and that seeks out honesty in people and situations around her. We thought of the image of building, tall and strong. It could be a beautiful building, but if it doesn't have "structural integrity" it isn't worth much and it is susceptible to failure. We pray she is built on a strong foundation of integrity and walks securely. 

What the bible says about integrity: 

Proverbs 10:9 "Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out." 

Patience

1. the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset

2. [patience] the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain without complaint, loss of temper, or anger

3. [patience] quiet, steady perseverance

Patience was one of the first things we discussed for this child. To be a patient person is to also be a selfless person in a lot of ways. We pray that our daughter has a "last shall be first" mentality. We hope that she is okay with not always having all the answers right away. I once heard that patience is passion tamed, and we pray our daughter would have the self-discipline as she grows older to learn this kind of life-giving patience. When a person truly learns to be patient, there is a lot of humility involved, and we pray our daughter may be humble enough to learn how to wait. 

What the bible says about patience:

1 Corinthians 13:4 "Love is patient and kind." 

Devotion

1. ardent, often selfless affection and dedication, as to a principal or person

2. [devoted] marked by dedicated loyalty

Devotion was a trait that Brent felt very strongly about, and so we are praying that this daughter will be loyal and passionate about what she believes. We pray she has the kind of devotion to things she truly cares about that allows her to cast vision and be a leader that would draw others in due to her excitement and passion. Obviously we pray she is devoted to the Lord, but also that she could find a few other things in her life that she can be truly devoted to. 

Purity

1. freedom from anything that contaminates or pollutes

2. lacking a knowledge of evil

3. a woman's virtue

Just as we pray for modesty for Blythe, purity is a trait that is often hard to find today. We pray our daughter has a pure view of others and the world, as well as a pure mind and heart. We pray she guards her heart from evil, as it is the "wellspring of her life" [Proverbs 4:23]. Obviously any parent wishes to protect their child's innocence, but we pray that her innocence would not be naive but spring from knowing the purity of God. 

What the bible says about purity:

Matthew 5:8 "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." 

and Psalm 119:9 "But how can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word." 

*all images from google