I saw Heaven and earth new-created. Gone the first Heaven, gone the first earth, gone the sea.
Revelation 21:1 (according to The Message)
Friends,
There is something special about baptism. No, not just because I get to make a mess with water. No not because it electrifies our kids to see water dripping from the roof after I’ve asperged the community. No, not because it often means there's extra people at worship that morning. There's something special about baptism because of what it is. It's a new beginning.
A new beginning not just for the candidate and their family, but for us too. You see, everytime we baptize or welcome someone in Christ, we change. We change because we are different. This is the eternal renewal of the church, through the Holy Spirit. Who, as Revelation suggests, is making all things new.
All things new which is about a process of looking forward, rather than back. Yes, looking back is important because we need to know, celebrate, and at times lament, where we’ve come from- but we can’t repeat yesterday. We can't live in yesterday. We can only live in today.
A living which when we think of ministry can often be a worry that we can't live up to someone else's standard or way of doing things. And that's just the thing, there is no standard way of doing things- there is just God's way. God's way which in baptism is brought to its perfection throughout our lives.
Life which we recognize and celebrate this Sunday as we gather to baptize six new members of our community, and give thanks for all those who have received the Order of New Westminster. An order whose intention is not about being on a pedestal or being perfect, just like those who are to be baptized, but about being windows into what is possible with God. A possibility we are asked to see in our own lives too- not to replicate it, but to do it in our own unique and joyful way.
Come Sunday to find out more. Bring a friend- bring two, and be ready to get wet and party!
Alex+
