Today my daughter celebrates her 10th birthday. It’s hard to believe my baby girl has entered into double digits. In this post, I want to highlight three ways to nurture your daughter’s heart.

If you were like me, I was overcome with an intense fear of the unknown the moment I realized I was going to have a daughter. Here was my problem…I had spent my entire life learning how to become a man.

At the time, our boys were 3 & 5 and I had an idea of the type of men I wanted our boys to be. But while we were waiting on our daughters arrival, I realized that everything I’d spend my life trying to become might not be what I should try to get my little girl to become too.

The Bible says in Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” I realized that I needed to learn how to keep watch over my daughter’s heart.

There are 3 things I want my daughter to know so I can nurture her heart:

She needs to know she plays a key role in God’s story

I want her to know that she is valued and loved by her Heavenly Father. I don’t want Emma to play it safe when it comes to her faith. I want her to be passionate and fierce in her devotion to God. It is my desire to nurture her heart in such a way so she doesn’t sit on the sidelines of God’s story. I want her to know she plays a critical role in the adventure.

She needs to know that she is sought after and fought for

I want my daughter to know that she has a hero that will love her no matter what. Emma needs to know that I simply enjoy spending time with her and that I’m also here to protect her. I want her to be able to identify what good men look like (when she starts dating in 20 years). I want her to know in her heart of hearts that she is precious to someone. And right now that someone is her DADDY!

She needs to know that her true beauty comes from within

Every girl wants to know that she’s beautiful. Every time I tell Emma that she’s beautiful, I see her eyes light up. That’s why I try to tell her as often as I can. But I don’t want her beauty to simply be outward. I want her to know that her beauty is from the inside — it’s about who she is!

If you’re a dad of a daughter, set out to nurture her heart by teaching her that she plays a key role in God’s story, that she is sought after and fought for, and that her true beauty comes from within.