為小女兒禱告 A Prayer for little daughter
【作者:Ho Eng-Tek 何英德】剪下一方暖和--喻道小故事 2013.04.28
Heavenly Father, when I gaze at the face of my little daughter sleeping in the bed, I always have an unspeakable joy deep inside my heart. I can't help gazing at her all the time.
Her special smell, curly hair, cute nose, little mouth, charming smile, pink cheeks, double chin, tiny fingers and toes, ......, my three-month-old daughter is so lovely, pretty and amazing to me.
How great is Your love
No wonder You said to us in the past, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness."(Jeremiah 31:3) Heavenly Father, now I can feel that how great is Your love that You give us, and how heartbroken You are when we disobey and turn away from You. Even though we are weak and lowly, You always love us deeply.
Definitely my little daughter is the most precious present from You, Heavenly Father. Every time I hold her in my arms, her breath and every movement of her chest as she breathes make me feel so content and delighted that I cannot put my feeling into words.
Lord, You feel the same about us, too. You have already showed us Your everlasting and endless love by saying "Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands...." (Isaiah 49:15-16a) And You so love us that You even show us Your love by giving us not only Your one and only Son but also eternal life.
It is not an easy job
Lord, as you know, it is not an easy job for me to be her good father because she is the most valuable property from You. However, With Your help and guidance, I believe I can do it better and better. Please give me the wisdom, love, strength and patience from You. And please teach me how to nurture her in You and educate her to know Your Word, Your way and You yourself.
But most of all, I know that You love her much more than I do, because she is the most precious apple of Your eye. In her lifetime, You must be always with her, beside her and taking good care of her. She is the lucky one that she has You in her life and be Your beloved child.
Finally, I want to thank you for giving her to us. I am so thankful that You gave us a chance to be her parents. Because of her, we can learn how to love and be loved, and because of her, our life is more completed. Lord, I would like to offer my little daughter to You, Heavenly Father, although she is from You and belongs to You.
In Jesus' name, amen.
天上的父啊，每當我凝視床上沈睡小女兒的臉蛋時，內心深處總有一股無法言喻的喜樂。我總是忍不住地凝望著她。
她特有的味道﹑捲曲的頭髮﹑可愛的鼻子﹑嬌小的嘴巴﹑迷人的微笑﹑嫣紅的臉頰﹑雙下巴﹑細小的手指和腳趾…，這三個月大的小女兒對我來說，如此可愛﹑漂亮和令我感到驚奇。
難怪，主在過去對我們說過﹕「我以永遠的愛來愛你，我以慈愛吸引你。」（耶利米書卅一章3節）天上的父啊，現在的我，能夠感受到你對我們的愛是如此偉大。我也了解當我們不順服你﹑轉臉不向你時，你是何其傷心。雖然我們是這樣的軟弱和卑微，但你總是深愛著我們。
無庸置疑地，我的小女兒是你賜給我的最佳禮物。每次我將她抱在懷中，她的呼吸﹑呼吸時胸口的微小起伏，都給我無比的滿足和愉悅，讓我無法用言語，將內心感情表達出來。
主啊，你也是這樣愛我們。你早已向我們彰顯你永恆﹑無止盡的愛，你說﹕「婦人焉能忘記她喫奶的嬰孩，不憐恤她所生的兒子﹖即或有忘記的，我卻不忘記你。看哪，我將你銘刻在我掌上…」（以賽雅書四十九章15-16節）你是如此地愛我們，甚至將你的獨生愛子及永恆生命賜給我們，以來表達你對我們的愛。
主啊，你知道的，對我來說，成為她的好父親不是件容易的事，因為她是你所賜予的寶貴產業。然而，因有你的幫助和引導，我相信能夠越做越好。請你賜給我從你而來的智慧﹑愛﹑力量和耐心，也請你教導我，如何在你裡面養育她，並教導她認識你的話語﹑旨意和你自己。
但最重要的是，我知道你比我更加深愛她，因為她就如你眼中珍貴的瞳仁。在她一生中，你必時刻與她同在，陪伴在她身旁﹑照顧她。她是如此幸運，有你在她的生命中，成為你所愛的兒女。
最後，我想要謝謝你，將她賜給我們。我心真是感恩，因為你賜給我們一個機會，成為她的父母﹔因著她，我們可以學習愛與被愛﹔因著她，我們的生命更加圓滿。主啊，我願將小女獻於你，天上的父，雖然她是從你而來，也本是屬於你的。
奉主耶穌的名，阿們。
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