Passport to Purity

I’m packing suitcases this morning and praying as I go.

Soon my firstborn daughter and I will hit the road for our highly-anticipated Passport to Purity get-away.

We are looking forward to three days and two nights of sheer girl time and we’re ready for some deep conversations about the path that lies ahead of my not-so-little girl.

(If you haven’t ever heard of this amazing plan that equips tweens with the tools needed to protect their gift of purity, learn more at Family Life).

Earlier today, as I penned Lizzy a letter in preparation for our trip, I wondered where all the time has gone.

Eleven years ago this beautiful baby girl was doing acrobatics in my womb while I counted the days until we’d meet face to face. Now, we must face the reality that my “baby girl” will soon be stepping into a world far beyond my womb, a world of choices and voices and promise.  

I want God’s voice to be the one she hears clearest. I want the teenage years to be filled joy, not regret. Since the day I learned Lizzy was tucked beneath my heart, I’ve been praying that she would delight in the way God loves her and that she would live like the “bride of the King’s only Son.”  I’ve always believed that if my daughters FIRST fall in love with Jesus, they will be able better able to navigate the world of human love with a whole and healthy heart.

When we go out to dinner tonight, I plan to share some of these prayers with my daughter. And I’ll hand her a copy of this simple poem I penned years ago as she danced across the living room floor with joy. Then together, we will pray that the teenage years to come will be yet another dance of delight, an amazing time of waltzing through change and challenge with Christ at her side.