At church this morning (Arapaho United Methodist), we welcomed a new member into Christ’s church. The little boy, a little more than a year old, was fascinated with the water; his brothers and sister, standing beside the pastors, were equally enthralled. After the pastor “baptized him in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” she walked the boy around the congregation, into the aisles. Each of us could see the little one to whom we were committing our pledge: that “this child, surrounded by steadfast love, will be established in the faith, and confirmed and strengthened in the way that leads to life eternal.” We pledged to always be there to help him know that God loves him. And quite fittingly, his siblings joined him on the walk, as a reminder that we had committed the same to them over the years.
I was reminded of a Sunday in January, 2001, when our children were baptized from the same fount at Arapaho (picture above). Our oldest is in college now; our youngest in junior high. They have been raised by a community – a community of family, of church, of teachers, and of friends.
It is because of THIS community, today, that I am especially thankful. And it is because of THIS community that I am eager to pass on the pledge to others.
In all things, Love.
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