June 9 – “A Navy baptism”

I did a baptism yesterday.  I know, yesterday was Saturday, not Sunday, but these were some special circumstances.  The believer who wanted to be baptized called a few days before.  She was looking for someone to baptize her who didn’t mind doing something a bit unorthodox, something unusual.  I told her if she was looking for unusual, she had certainly come to the right place.  I have done some quite unusual things over the years, and that has certainly been one of many words used to describe me. 

Her situation was this.  She had joined the Navy and desperately wanted to be baptized to declare her faith to her friends and family before she left for boot camp.  For one reason or another the time had gotten away from her.  She was scheduled to leave on Sunday (today), so she needed to do the baptism Saturday or her window of opportunity would be missed.  As it happened, her grandparents were hosting a going-away party for her at their home in Tiki Island.  She wondered if I could come to the party and do the baptism there.  I assured her that we could work something out to make that happen, and she was very grateful.  After one return phone call to make sure I would still do it if some of the people at the party would be drinking beer (I assured her that would be fine.  After all, weren’t they among the people she wanted to hear the message that had changed her life?), everything was set to go. 

I tried to keep everything very simple.  As we stood on the deck of the grandparents’ home, overlooking the canal, I explained seven different ways baptism was a snapshot of something else.  Very easy to do, by the way, in the context of someone joining the Navy.  Lots of water connections.  Spiritual washing … Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection … the believer dying to his old way of life and rising to new life with Jesus … following what Jesus did … obeying what Jesus commanded … entering into the covenant with God that makes believers part of his family … and initiation into a community of common experience.  And of course I added the plan of salvation – the challenge for them to make the same commitment of their lives to a love relationship with Jesus.  The whole thing only took around ten minutes.  They seemed to be really following.  Three or four of them were taping it all with cell phones.  Next I asked Rochelle to state in her own words why she was doing this baptism thing.  She did a great job.  And then came the baptism itself.  I made trhe declaration, “I baptize you, my sister, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”  She crossed her hands over her chest, and … yes, I really did it.  I shoved her into the canal.  She came up with a huge smile on her face.  There were numerous misty eyes in the crowd, and quite a few cheers.  Grandpa remembered to let down the ladder so she could more easily climb back out.  I got a big, wet thank you hug.  Some days sure make this being a pastor thing worth it all.

Psalms 94:14 says, “For the Lord will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance.”

Father, watch over Rochelle as she enters the Navy.  Keep her in your care.  Amen.