Did you know the Bible talks about four different
baptisms? Most likely, if you’ve been
breathing on this earth for any amount of time, you’ve heard of a baptism. And most likely, the only kind of baptism
that you’re thinking of involves someone being immersed in water. Or, if you’re from a Catholic background,
perhaps you’re thinking of infant baptism where water is sprinkled on the
baby’s head by a priest.
The other night, our pastor preached about baptisms again,
but this time, God revealed something about my past that I had never realized
before. One of the things I appreciate
about Pastor Fred (www.citylifeva.com)
is that several times a year, he will preach about topics he has already
addressed. He always brings fresh wisdom
to these sermons, so even if you’ve been around City Life Church for a while,
tune in. There’s usually something new
being shared you haven’t heard before.
To listen to his sermon, click here: Holy Spirit Series- Pentecost Part One
I won’t even try to summarize his sermon from that night,
but I will offer this image from his slides, and what the Holy Spirit revealed
to me as I was sitting in my seat.
The word “baptism” literally means to be “immersed.”
Baptism in Water:
being immersed in water, this baptism is a symbol of sin washing away, coming
up made new and making a public declaration of your commitment to the Lord.
(P.S. if you’ve ever seen a child choose to be baptized, and share their
reasons for it, bring your tissues. There is something so precious about a child who has chosen this huge step of faith!)
Baptism into the Body
of Christ: being immersed into a church body is one of the expectations God
places on us as Christians.
Baptism of Fire:
quite literally, being immersed in a season of suffering.
Baptism with the Holy
Spirit: listen to PF’s sermon J
ultimately, this baptism means to be immersed in the Holy Spirit, empowered by
the Holy Spirit to share the gospel with the world.
I honestly had never heard of the latter three baptisms on
that list until coming to City Life Church in 2013. In a way, I’ve been a little upset about
that! How had I attended churches for
almost ten years before really hearing what Scripture has to say about baptism?!
Over the years, I’ve actually written graduate papers about
baptism of the Holy Spirit, and been listening to PF’s sermons on
baptisms. So when he started preaching
the other night, I settled into my seat, eager to learn something new.
And when this slide came onto the projection screen, I heard
(well, felt… I don’t really heard the audible voice of God) the Holy Spirit
whisper to me:
You experienced all four of these
baptisms within just weeks of each other in the summer of 2014.
And I immediately knew what He was talking about.
In the summer of 2014, we had been attending City Life
Church for about 8 months.
On June 1st, we were getting ready to head up to
our Williamsburg campus (then held at a YMCA) to participate in their water baptism. Jordan and I had never
been baptized as believers. We both had
been baptized as infants in the Catholic Church, and had prayed over the years
about whether or not being baptized as adult believers was really
“necessary.” So on this day, we were getting
ready to make a very prayerful decision about walking forward in our faith with
God surrounded by our new church community.
That Sunday, we also found out we were expecting for the
first time. As many of you know, we had
been trying for quite awhile, and had undergone a lot of infertility testing
that spring. To find out we were
pregnant on the same day we chose to be baptized was miraculous.
Just a few weeks after our baptism in water, we miscarried
that baby. That season marks one of the
most difficult times of suffering in my life.
I was heartbroken, confused, scared, and lost. I was going through baptism in fire.
That summer, we were on the cusp of choosing to become
members of the church and start officially tithing. Over the 5 years of our marriage, we hadn’t
actually ever become members of a church.
We were always moved too quickly by the Air Force to settle in! In July, we decided to become members of City
Life Church and wrote our first tithing check.
We experienced baptism into the
body of Christ. And
wow did that feel good. We were
committed to this church and these people.
We were home.
About the third week in July, I traveled to camp in Pennsylvania
with our church’s youth group as a volunteer leader. I was excited to get out of Hampton and be
distracted from the pain we had suffered that summer. I had no idea how God would meet me at
camp. I thought I was there for the
kids! Apparently, God had bigger plans
for me. About the second night of camp,
the lead speaker had an altar call for the leaders to come forward and receive
prayer. I resisted at first. But as soon as I went up there, the pastor
came and put his hand over my head and prayed about my life ahead of me being
filled with children. I fell to my knees and wept. He had no idea who I was or the loss I had
just suffered. I was overcome with the
Father’s love for me and received baptism
of the Holy Spirit and my spiritual language.
Now, I realize that at this point, I may have lost of some
of you. You may question what I’m
talking about or maybe I’m “stretching the truth” a little bit. That’s ok.
I realize this topic is heavy, and may not be received well from someone
who hasn’t learned about baptisms in this way.
If that’s the case, I really urge you to listen to the sermon I linked
above, and reach out to me with questions.
Don’t let your confusion and doubt keep you from
seeing the miracles of God.
Do some research.
Listen to some podcasts. Ask some
questions. Have these baptisms been
present in your life?
What’s even the significance of me sharing such personal
details with you all? Why does this
matter?
Honestly, I’m not sure.
I’m not sure what you’ll get out of it.
Maybe you’ll just be left in awe like I was on Saturday night of the
revelation God can drop on you in just a moment in church. Maybe you’ll reflect on your own life and see
if these baptisms have been present. And
if not, how come?
What I am sure of is this: God loves you. He loves you so much that he desires a life
of baptism for you. A life of immersion. Immersion into a faith walk with Him. Immersion into His church. Immersion into a life of suffering so He can
show you His glory and goodness and care for you in those seasons. Immersion into empowerment by the Holy Spirit
to carry out His ministry so all may know
His love.
Don’t miss out on this love.
In light of Valentine’s Day tomorrow, I encourage you to
think about writing a love note to God.
Let Him know what you feel about Him and commit to placing Him back on
the throne of your heart.
The summer of 2014 was a very transformative, powerful,
life-changing summer for me. Since then,
my eyes have been opened wide to the ways God moves every day. I pray with a boldness I didn’t have before
those baptisms. I have a faith that is
unshakable.
As we are about to welcome our third baby into this family
this coming summer, exactly 5 years later, I am in awe of the truth of the
words spoken by that pastor at camp. God
knew what I needed that night to restore my hope.
I hope this testimony reaches you where you’re at, and
you’re heart is open.
All to God’s glory,
Amy
Awesome Amy!
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