Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God. Keep my statutes and do them; I am the Lord who sanctifies you. (Leviticus 20:7-8 ESV)
Joshua told the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you. (Joshua 3:5 NIV)
On the last day of camp, I reviewed the truths we’d explored throughout the week:
– We are created by the Creator as masterpieces with a purpose.
– The Holy Spirit, God’s Shekinah glory within us, guides us as we create.
– We are called to resonate in community so that we create with excellence.
– We are to stay in a posture of holy boldness as we worship God through our gifts.
Now it was time to seal those teachings into the hearts of these young artists.
I explained that to consecrate something means to set it apart—to dedicate it for a sacred purpose. When we consecrate something to God, we acknowledge his sovereignty: his complete power, wisdom, and authority. He can do anything, at any time. When we commit ourselves to that truth, we become consecrated—devoted entirely to him.
But consecration doesn’t mean we’re puppets or that our choices don’t matter. It means we trust that God is bigger than anything we face, always working for good—even when we don’t understand. He’s never surprised or shaken. When we’re consecrated, we are set apart for a holy and divine purpose.
In Scripture, we see this with Samuel, who was consecrated to God as a young child. His mother, Hannah, brought him to the temple and said:
“Now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.”
(1 Samuel 1:28 NIV)
Samuel grew up to become a priest and a prophet, serving God’s people.
We also see consecration in the life of Jesus. At his baptism, Jesus publicly acknowledged his dedication to the Father—and the Father responded with affirmation:
“This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”
(Matthew 3:17 NLT)
When we are consecrated to God, we bring the Father joy.
We are set apart to worship God and to share Jesus with others.
You were created to create.
I was created to create.
We were created to tell God’s story.
We were made for a sacred purpose.
We are marked by God, and when we live out what we were created to do, we will know deep joy—and we will give God great joy.
Father,
Thank you for the many ways in which you have called us to create. Help us to create in such a way that we tell your story to those around us, shining your Light and Joy for all to see. Take our lives and let them be consecrated for you. Take our moments and our days, let them flow in ceaseless praise. Take our hands and let them move at the impulse of your love. Take our wills and make them yours, they will be no longer ours. Take ourselves and we will be ever, only, all for you, we ask in Jesus’s name. AMEN.
Take my life and let it be consecrated to Thee
Take my moments and my days, let them flow in ceaseless praise
Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love
Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee
Take my voice and let me sing always, only for my King
Take my lips and let them be filled with messages from Thee
Take my silver and my gold, not a might would I withhold
Take my intellect and use every power as You choose
Take my will and make it Thine, it shall be no longer mine
Take my heart, it is Thine own, it shall be Thy royal throne
Take my love, my Lord I pour at Your feet, it’s treasure store
Take myself and I will be ever, only, all for Thee
(“Take My Life and Let It Be” by Frances Ridley Havergal, 1874)
After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. When the bull had been sacrificed, they brought the boy to Eli, and she said to him, “Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there. (1 Samuel 1:24-28 NIV)