Baby Dedication Gifts From Your Ministry

I’d bet there were a lot of baby dedications this past weekend for Mother’s Day. What a perfect day to honor new babies and welcome them into your church family!

But did you feel fully equipped to teach the parents what a baby dedication is all about? Because – plot twist – a baby dedication is not about the baby. It’s about the parents and their commitment to raise their child in the church. It’s about the church’s commitment to partner with parents in the discipleship of their child. (Psst – If you want a full resource to help you communicate the significance of a child dedication, check out our baby dedication guide here.)

Many leaders and churches also give a special gift to the family for a baby dedication to help them commemorate the day and start them off on their discipleship journey as a family. Here are some of the most popular baby dedication gifts I’ve seen churches give to parents and children:

• Baby Dedication Certificate – These customizable baby gift printables make the perfect certificate! You can either add the child’s dedication date or their birthday.
• Baby or Toddler’s Bible – This is a classic baby dedication gift! It’s hard to go wrong with this one, but some of my favorite baby/toddler Bibles include Baby’s Hug-a-Bible (written by the same author who wrote the Jesus Storybook Bible, another good option, but a bit too old for babies and toddlers), the Read to Me Toddler Bible, The Big Book of Bible Stories for Toddlers (this is my daughter’s favorite!), and The Beginner’s Bible.
• Ministry Gifts – Use a site like Discount Mugs to make a onesie or a sippy cup with your children’s ministry logo. Or ask around your church to see if anyone does embroidery, and you can embroider your ministry name or logo onto a burp cloth.
• Baby Care Supplies – New parents can never have enough diapers or wipes.
• Parent Devotional – Give parents a guide in intentional praying for their son or daughter, or share a one-year devotional that takes parents through the Bible and guides them in praying for their family. We also used to give a copy of this book to all of our parents!
• Spiritual Parenting Resources – Maybe you gift each family a subscription to HomeFront Magazine or share resources from Orange’s Parent Cue library.
• Blanket – If you have an older population in your church, recruit some of them to make or knit some sweet, handmade baby blankets for your child dedication. How sweet for parents to know the blanket was made with love and prayer by a fellow church member.
• Family Photos – Invite a professional photographer to the morning, asking them to take photos of the dedication itself and then stick around for a special family photo before or after the service. You could even set up a nice photo booth so the backdrop and lighting are perfect for this special occasion!
• Small stuffed animal/snuggly – Our church uses Orange curriculum, so we received a small Ollie plush doll, which was my daughter’s favorite toy for several months as a baby. Anything babies can snuggle and cuddle with is always a win, and bonus points if it relates to something they’ll see at church one day too!
• A note of encouragement or blessing – Combine this idea with one of the above, or use on its own. Either way, write a sweet card to the parents and family for their baby’s dedication. Some of our favorite baby dedication cards are here.