When you pass through the waters,
    I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
    they will not sweep over you.

Isaiah 43:1

Today our beautiful granddaughter, Beks, becomes a teenager. She was born the summer we left Florida, just a couple of weeks before her uncle Andrew married Alicia in Midland Michigan.

Beks and her family made it to the wedding regardless, and that is where we shared our first hug. Just a few days later, Rebekah and I drove through Canada then upstate New York and on into Connecticut, so that Rebekah could baptize this tiny and exquisite addition to the family in a Sunday morning service at the Westchester Congregational Church where the family worshipped.

My Words for Beks:

And that is what I want to talk with you about today in your birthday letter, Rebekah Mae Campbell. I want to talk about the fact that you are baptized (not were, but are), that your family made some important promises to God on your behalf, and that now it is you who is the one with the opportunity and the privilege to keep them.

The scripture I quoted when I first wrote about your baptism day (I have called you by name, you are mine) comes from the prophet Isaiah, and it goes like this:

But now, this is what the Lord says—
he who created you, Jacob,
he who formed you, Israel:
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name; you are mine.” – Isaiah 43:1

This is a powerful and amazing truth, Beks! The fact that The Lord of Everything imagined you, designed you, formed you and then gifted you into this world thirteen years ago. Not only that, but the Creator knows you by name. God is very clear about the fact that you belong to him.

The Creator is also very clear about this: Because you are God’s beloved child, you have nothing to fear and beyond everything to live for, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.”

This is your story now:

So now you are a teenager, Beks, and you are in a position to take those promises your parents made (to raise you as a deeply loved child of God) and make them your own.

More than anything, this is your story now. And I do not believe that there is anything better or more effective that you can do for your future than to lean into your faith, and to make your own personal commitment to follow Jesus.

Being a teenager is not easy, don’t doubt that for a second. But being rooted in God’s love is more real and strong and true and lasting than anything this world can ever throw at you.

• So play your music and become the best cellist imaginable… but play your cello as an offering for Creator God.
• And be so amazingly beautiful as you obviously are… but be lovely both outside and inside, as a tribute to the love of Jesus.
• And learn all you can with those smarts you have been gifted with… but be wise and creative and imaginative in gratitude to God’s purposes for your life.
• And be kind and compassionate and inspirational for others, as I know you can be… because there are people who will need you to encourage them and to lift them up.

In short, lovely granddaughter, we are so proud of you in every way. And we hold you not only in our hearts but secure in the heart of God.

We love you, and we cannot wait to see you grow into the beautiful, strong, creative, compassionate, faith-filled young woman we are already beginning to see…

Only don’t grow up too quickly, please. It’s okay, really, you have all the time in the world.

In love, and because we love you so very much. Your grandaddy, DEREK