Hi friends! Our family is back from holidays, rested (ha!) and ready for serving this beautiful community the rest of the summer. So if you missed it, last week we held an inspiring service at Trowbridge Falls, immersing 4 of our community members into the waters of baptism. It was seriously wonderful and if you missed it, I’m really sorry! Baptisms are maybe my favourite part of being a pastor I think. The whole thing is just packed with meaning and significance but underlying all of it is blissful celebration. Because we’re celebrating peoples’ intentional move toward trusting and walking in the way of Jesus. And if you think about it, the more people that do this faithfully in the world, the more hope and healing there is being poured out in the world and if that’s not a cause for celebration I’m not sure what is.

So I spoke a little bit but we didn’t record it so let me offer 2 things that I mentioned. I first provided a parable I recently heard that speaks to the tendency many of us have when it comes to baptism and other milestone events in the Christian life. I shared that a young couple were getting married and the bride had spent SO much time preparing for the wedding and ensuring every detail of the event was perfect but then as soon as it was all said and done she kissed her husband good night and then went home and slept alone in her parents’ home. To make a longish story short, the idea was that we tend to put a lot of stock into events but can often forget what the event points to. In the case of the story, it’s the marriage. What’s the point of a wedding if you’re not going to have a marriage that follows? And in the case of baptism, it’s the relationship and consequent life of faithfulness in pursuit and in step with Jesus. Baptism is a beautiful and meaningful event but it only exists as a means of welcoming the individual to a life of commitment to Jesus, his community, and the life he offers through others-oriented, self-sacrificial love. 

And then the second thing I noted was that I challenged our community to take seriously the responsibility of helping these young people in their faith journeys. That means through encouragement and by offering grace in the slip ups and struggles of life, but also, and perhaps more importantly, through setting an example of what Jesus-living looks like in our own day to day lives. As iron sharpens iron, right? And here’s the thing: this isn’t just for the newly baptized but it’s for all of us. This is the responsibility–and the gift–we have to offer one another in the Church and it’s not something to be taken lightly. Being a member of a church, any church really, is to assume a role toward mutually edifying and encouraging one another on toward faithful living every single day. And obviously, this means beyond just Sunday mornings. It means doing life together, in pursuit of becoming like Jesus. Some days we’ll soar and some days, frankly, we’ll tank, which is why we need each other! The baptism ceremony, then, serves as a great opportunity to remind us of this role and responsibility that we play in each other’s lives. So again, if you missed this past Sunday, consider yourselves reminded of what role you get to play in Christian community for one another!