I don’t literally remember my own baptism because I was baptized as an infant. Yet, I still have been able to remember that event many times throughout my life. I have heard stories of the day. I have stood on the same ground and touched the font where my baptism occurred in the small United Methodist Church in which I was raised. And, I have remembered my baptism in many other churches across the years during services of reaffirmation and even remembered it once while standing on the muddy banks of the Jordan River. These moments of remembering have always felt like a gift from God to me.
Each of us, no matter when or where we were baptized, also have the gift of remembering it. We each have promised to renounce wickedness and repent from sin, to accept the freedom to resist evil, injustice, and oppression, and to confess Jesus as Lord. We have committed to honor God and serve the church with our prayers, presence, gifts, service, and witness. These promises are more than words we say on a single occasion. They are channels through which the Holy Spirit moves to transform and guide our lives as disciples of Jesus Christ.
As I begin my time at Benson Memorial as your pastor, I want us all to take a moment to remember our baptisms, not as a singular event in our past but as a continuing gift from God moving us together into a bright future. Remembering our baptismal promises gives us clarity and energy for the journey of ahead. Remembering our baptism fills us with gratitude for the grace we have received. Remembering our baptism shapes us with hope for what God is making new in our lives and in the life of this church. So, remember your baptism and be thankful!
