Monday, April 15, 2013

My Experience with Water Baptism

This is my year for Opportunity and I feel like God has been reaching out to me and blessing me in so many ways.  I finally am at the point where I could experience this and by sharing it with my family, friends, and readers of my blog, maybe I can inspire you as well.
 
This Sunday I was baptized at my new church home.  It was a thrilling and surreal experience that I have been wanting to partake in for a long time.  I was baptized as a baby in the Catholic Church and went through the entire list of sacraments up through Confirmation, however, I don't follow the Catholic Church.  I spoke about my church and faith experiences in a previous post, but I wanted to truly connect to God.  I felt like I was following a set of rules because an organization of people was telling me to and I didn't necessarily feel a spiritual link to this almighty being.  I did everything they told me to, from going to mass and Wednesday CCD, but it still felt either foreign or forced.  Praying to Christ felt far more comfortable in the setting of a conversation and I would pray to him about all of this.  While in college, I developed a love and yearning to follow in the path of Christ, but I didn't know what that necessarily meant.  I did know that I wanted to proclaim my love and devotion to Christ as an adult.  I had been praying about it throughout my college experience and when I got here (Montana) and discovered the new church I now belong to, I knew the time was right.

After taking a class and speaking with Pastor Kern, I was baptized at the service following the class.  It was such a cool experience and one that I highly recommend to those who are reconnecting to their faith.  Being placed in the water was such a beautiful moment.  I felt like God was reaching out to me and telling me that He was so glad that I made this decision, that I was finally content in who I am as a person that I could publicly declare this.  The church family has been so welcoming and open, I have never felt safer in making this decision.  A couple sitting next to me offered to take these pictures for me.









Exodus 14:14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only be still.

The scripture speaks to me on so many levels and it was crazy today because as I was listening to the service, I felt like God was telling me that I needed to become a pastor.  I know, it sounds so strange but I couldn't stop thinking about it and I have never thought about that as a career path.  Right now I'm looking at graduate school programs and came across Liberty University, where pastor Jarrid Wilson attends.  He is the Tennessee pastor that I think is truly helping bring young people into the church in a safe, non-judgmental environment.  I have so many thoughts going through my head right now and I'm not entirely sure how to process it all but I'm definitely willing to learn more.  I want to go where God will lead me.  I trust Him.  

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15 comments :

  1. This was such a beautiful post! Thank you for sharing :)

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    1. Thank you for reading! I'm sure there are so many people out there juggling thoughts on faith and I was just fortunate enough to find a space that I felt comfortable and welcomed in to proceed with such an important step in my life. I appreciate the wonderful comment and that you took the time to read through the post :) It means a lot to me.

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  2. Such a wonderful post! Good luck on your spiritual journey!

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    1. Aww thank you Jessica! Love receiving comments from you and thank you for taking the time to read the post. This was such a big step for me, especially having been raised in the Catholic Church. My family back home only somewhat understands this process so I felt that it was so important to share my journey, especially for those who want to reconnect in their faith.

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    1. Little sister blogger! Thank you :)
      This was a big step for me and one that I feel has just opened up my mind to the possibilities. Thank you for taking the time to read this and I appreciate all the love and support :)

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  4. Thank you so much! I figured that other people, whether they are bloggers or just readers of blogs, may be going through a similar experience and I couldn't think of a better way to express my faith than to share it with others. Thank you for the compliment and taking the time to read the post :)

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  5. so glad you're a part of our church family, and congrats on taking this step in obedience to such a faithful and loving God!!! Looking forward to getting to know you better! :)

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    1. Thank you! I so look forward to service every Sunday (which is a first for me) and every service, regardless of the pastor, is always inspiring, unique and uplifting. I absolutely love it! I'm hoping to become more involved in the church community and definitely meet more people :)

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  6. I am so happy for you love! I'm so glad I could be there to witness this! And the pictures came out great. I still feel bad about that but I'm so glad you were able to have this experience! You are certainly an inspiration!

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    1. No reason to feel bad at all! I was so thankful to have someone from my missile family there, especially since Ryan isn't seeking a church family (yet). I'm hoping to bring him with me to a few services and to see if he likes it. It's a beautiful experience and I am so glad that I have a friend there with me through all of this :)

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  7. I do not know if we have met but I am so excited for you & your new walk with God. Excited to see you grow in the Lord while you are at Great Falls Christian Center! Wonderful Decision to follow Christ & all the He leads you to!!!

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    1. Thank you so much! I am so incredibly excited to be a part of this church community while I'm stationed at Malmstrom AFB. I could feel it in my heart that this was the right time and I'm excited to see where this journey leads me :)

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  8. Nothing tugs my heart and tears me up faster than a baptism! I love that you shared!

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