baptism

yesterday after church, we stuck around for a pitch-in and baptism ceremony. we don't have a baptismal in our church, so we all made our way to another church a short distance down the road. when we told the girls where we were going and what was going to take place, questions abounded. leah has always been especially curious about God and religion, so learning about baptism piqued her curiosity. she wanted to know exactly what was going to happen and why. i explained to her the symbolism of baptism and how it is a public declaration of faith. at the ceremony, leah was front and center, taking in all she could around her. i always get choked up during baptism ceremonies and i know that when my girls decide to do so, i'll be a mess. to physically witness my child proclaiming her faith and love in Jesus will most definitely bring me to tears.

i don't want to turn this post into ammunition for flaming, so please don't take offense to what i'm going to say. there are many different beliefs regarding baptism out there and these are my thoughts and my views on what i've read in the Bible and feel in my heart. jas, leah, and i were all baptized as babies. but after reading more about baptism in the Bible and learning more about it, we don't feel our infant baptisms were really what they were intended to be. the baptisms we had were more of a dedication into the family of God; a dedication into the Church family. baptism, on the other hand, is an individual's choice - a proclamation of faith and an actual representation of the crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Christ.

please don't misunderstand me. salvation doesn't hinge upon baptism. a baptism, whether an infant sprinkling or a submersion, doesn't have to occur in order for an individual to be saved. the only way we are truly saved is by Christ's death upon the cross. His sacrifice is our ticket to Heaven. there is nothing that we could or couldn't do (ceremonies and such included) that could ever guarantee or deny us entry into Heaven. Jesus has already purchased our ticket for us. baptism is just an outward act that we can do to show that we trust in God and know that we have a 1-way ticket to Heaven. heck, even Jesus himself was baptized!

leah brought up the baptism ceremony yet again before bed. i told her that when she was ready to be baptized to let us know and we would gladly set it up with our pastor. even jas and i talked about being baptized again. it's not that we don't appreciate our baptisms as babies...it's just that we want to follow Jesus's example and be baptized when we truly know and are fully aware of what the ceremony means. it's been tugging at my heart lately and i need to follow the tug that's there. perhaps we'll do it when leah decides she's ready as well. then maybe the tears of pride and indebtedness that will no doubt fall will be a little less conspicuous.