At Grace Covenant Church in Gilbert, we have elected to celebrate One Year of Life for the children born to members of our congregation. A celebration day is held 3 months after the day of the child’s birth. This event celebrates the fact that the child has grown inside of his mother’s womb for approximately 9 months, prior to birth, and then has experienced 3 months of life outside of the womb.

For about 5 years now, we have practiced this celebration of life with very positive results. Traditionally, we will choose the closest Sunday to each baby’s “One Year of Life Day”. That Sunday is set aside for our church family’s celebration. After the morning service, we offer thanks for the dear child’s one year of life and celebrate with cake and ice cream.

God clearly instructs us in the Bible that life starts at conception. Psalm 139:14 says, “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Isaiah 44:24 declares, "This is what the LORD says--your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb….” Psalm139:15-16 further reminds us of God’s authority over life and death. “My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

Science also reveals that human life begins at the time of conception. From the moment fertilization takes place, a child's genetic makeup is already complete. His or her gender has already been determined, along with their height, hair, eye, and skin color. The only thing the embryo needs, to become a fully functioning human-being, is time to grow and develop.

Similarly, when you plant an oak seed in the ground, everything that the mighty oak will be is contained within that tiny planted seed. It is an oak seed but as soon as it germinates it is an oak tree. As it pops through the earth to see the sun, and receives water, the seed will grow into a mighty oak.

Science alone could never fully reveal to us the wonder of birth. It is true that life begins at conception but a beautiful new baby is even more exciting when you recognize God’s hand is at work. God has revealed to us, through His Word, that He knows who each baby will be even before their conception. God says in His Word (The Bible) that, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations, Jeremiah 1:5. In Genesis 1:27, the Word says “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”

Acts 17:24-28 says "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and every thing else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, “We are his offspring”.

Considering the previous Holy Scripture, it is difficult to understand how so many people today (including many professing Christians) still choose to believe that life starts at birth. We as, Christians, should be genuinely excited to recognize the approximate day that God initially formed us as a living being. Celebrating the 3 months mark after our birth date is one method of honoring God.

This method is really simple, just count three months forward from your birth date and hold a special One Year of Life celebration to acknowledge your baby’s one year of life. I was born into this world on 6/8/1948. My own conception date was approx. 9/8/1947. That means that my one year of life day was 9/8/1948 and my one year birthday was 6/8/49. When was your one year of life day?

1 Corinthians 10:31 says: Whatever you do whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it to the glory of God.” At Grace Covenant Church, we believe that our actions to acknowledge the one year of life will truly honor our God, the giver of life.

My prayer is that Christians everywhere will come to recognize that life begins at conception and that we are responsible to protect the precious life that God has brought to pass. May we each bring Glory to His name as we serve the giver of life.

Pastor Darrell Gustafson