Vows

After David was baptized, people in church kept telling me congratulations. I didn’t realize that was what people tell parents after their children are baptized, but it makes sense.

We don’t believe the water saved David, but that it represents Christ’s cleansing power, union with Christ and David’s inclusion in God’s covenant community.

When Matt was reading the vows I was wrestling with a baby, which made it hard to pay attention. So here they are again, for you and for me:

1) Do you acknowledge your child’s need of the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ, & the renewing grace of the Holy Spirit?

2) Do you claim God’s covenant promises in his/her behalf, & do you look in faith to the Lord Jesus Christ for his/her salvation, as you do your own?

3) Do you now unreservedly dedicate your child to God, & promise, in humble reliance upon divine grace, that you will endeavor to set before him/her a godly example, that you will pray with & for him/her, that you will teach him/her the doctrines of our holy religion, & that you will strive, by all the means of God’s appointment, to bring him/her up in the nurture & admonition of the Lord?

The church members also took a vow to help us in our endeavor to raise our child to know the Lord.

That’s what was happening in this photo. That’s why I was smiling.

 

5 Comments

  1. Jenny Ramsey February 22, 2012

    it was a wonderful day and we loved celebrating with you guys. love the pictures of our little boys. they WILL be best friends, it’s not really an option at this point.<br>ps. "well, you never stand up straight." LOVE IT! hahaha. almost as good as telling you your jaw might fall off.

    Reply
  2. sjgretz February 22, 2012

    Amanda, I loved seeing this. I too was so preoccupied by all the fun we were having that I didn’t notice David squirming!! I told Peter after church that you probably didn’t realize you were getting David baptized with the Gretz family circus and felt kind of bad. AH! This is where we are and I am loving/learning to love where we are. Even if it means trying to jump off the communion table during a baptism. <br>So happy for your family Amanda! Thanks for sharing these pictures and your life in this way!

    Reply
  3. tomamanda February 23, 2012

    Haha, Matt told us you’d be up there, so we were looking forward to having you guys up there, too.<br>Ah, and aren’t communion tables so FUN to jump off??

    Reply
  4. ej_phillips February 26, 2012

    Just FYI…if you ever discover David has gone missing, it’ll probably be because I will be wanting to keep my church family vows for him up close and personal. So just check the Southside. I am proclaiming him to be one of Gracie’s "baby" trainers.

    Reply
  5. Carolyn Bales February 26, 2012

    Eh, I spent all of Meg’s baptism wrestling with her too. Don’t think God minds.Also I LOVE YOUR WHITE PANTS. They are so incredibly cute on you.

    Reply

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