Baptism: Water, Fire and Spirit
"I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." ~ Matthew 3:11
Heavenly Father
Great is Your plan for me! Although I may not grasp its scope, the weight of it shows just how much glory You will have through me. Thank You for using me as a vessel. Build upon my character so I may help shape Your kingdom to Your will. Bring forth Your children so we may spread Your Word across many lands and to the ends of the earth!
In Your glorious name, Jesus, I pray
Amen
“Teacher? Teacher!” Your children’s voices, I hear them calling. I can’t help but smile in the presence of Your promises. My prayers have been answered, and You’ve chosen me to help pave their path towards You.
Reaching me, Eronadel and Vesper embrace me first as Harim and Markus stop before me. The tears in their eyes run down their cheeks as I see both Harim and Markus look up to You. My smile widens with this sight. They’ve learned to trust You.
“What a blessing it is to see you all so close to Him.”
Markus looks at me, “Teacher, how? How are you alive? We watched you fall…”
“By His will and grace, He brought me out of the trench so we may unite.”
“Teacher,” Harim says, “Our prayers have been answered. Last night we prayed for you to be alive. And here you are… the Lord answered us.” His tears stream down his face as he falls to his knees.
“Arise my student. Rejoice with me as He has a plan for us. One that will come in His time, nevertheless, we must prepare for it.” I glance over at the lake we find ourselves at and turn back to them, “Therefore, I think it’s time we baptize each of you in His glorious name!”
Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you-not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 3:21
Eronadel
The first one of Your children to step forward is none other than Eronadel. His flare of passion and excitement brings smiles to each of our faces.
“I’m ready!” He exclaims with great enthusiasm.
“Eager you are it seems. Remember Eronadel, this decision to pledge your life to Christ should not be taken lightly. It is a great responsibility that will challenge you daily for the rest of your life here on earth.”
He looks at me and nods with confidence and assurance, “I know it won’t be easy, but if I’ve learned anything from the past few days, it’s that Jesus brings us peace even when we are suffering! That’s what I want out of every day of my life!”
In his proclamation of his desire to have You in his life, we step into the shallow portion of the lake. I place my palm on his back and ask him, “Do you promise to serve Him, to give Your life and heart to Him?”
“I do!” He smiles proudly.
“Then Eronadel, I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit! Arise and be made whole!”
As he lifts out of the water, the mist surrounding the area begins to disperse to where the shoreline is fully visible.
Vesper
Next one up is the silent, yet curious, Vesper. After finishing her embrace with Eronadel, she shuffles into the water. Her cheeks rise from her smile that would make anyone break out into a smile.
In her approach, there are no words to speak out except for Your praise. Lord, at this moment, let us celebrate Your children running to Your embrace. Let You, our Christ, enter our souls as we seek Your joy and peace.
“I would like to say something, if that’s alright Teacher?”
Hearing this from her fills me with warmth, “My dear Vesper, you are always welcome to speak.”
She nods with her smile, “Okay!” She turns toward the boys and takes a deep breath, “This time was scary. But through it all, I knew that as long as we were together we’d be fine. Just like when Ron and I were all alone, as long as we were together, everything worked out. And now with Teacher being in our family here, he’s brought Jesus to us when we didn’t have Him before. Yes, we fear and cry, but with us all hoping and praying together, we’ve come to trust in not just Him but in each other! So with this, I want nothing more than to continue in that and to watch us all grow together!”
She looks up to the sky with her eyes closed and nods to You. Then she looks at me and nods, “Beautifully spoken, my dear Vesper. Truly, I say, the Lord binds us all together in His love, and it’s in that truth that you speak that we are blessed. Now, do you promise to serve Him, to give Your life and heart to Him?”
She nods with tears in her eyes, “I do.”
“Then Vesper, I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit! Arise and be made whole!”
As she comes out of the water, the mist from the forest seems to have faded away to where we can now see the path leading up the mountain.
Disciple Markus
Tales of Markus
In this journey, I’ve realized that God has been with me every step of the way. My father was blessed to see Jesus walk this earth. Now, I am blessed to be able to pursue Him through the teachings of Zaith and Jesus.
Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.”
John 20:29
I come before You, Lord. My eyes tilted up to the heavens to see the wonder of Your creation. My mind is filled with awe at the beauty of Your creation. The mountain range we find ourselves in, even with the misty patches that make it difficult to see, Your creation still finds glory in the mystery. In some way, You make it this way to show Your presence.
Now, as I come to Zaith, my eyes lower to the lake where we are, and even though we have reached our destination, I feel that we are just reaching the starting line. A slight reflection of myself is found in the stillness of the water as teacher asks, “Are you ready, Markus?”
Heavenly Father
I come before You, my heart open wide. Lord, I ask from You, hold me in my weakness and carry me through the trials. As I surrender and pledge my life to You, I hope to give You all that I am so You can in turn be close to me. So I ask again, Father, embrace me just as You’ve embraced those who have come before me as I continue to stretch my heart out for You.
In Your Son’s name, Jesus
Amen
My eyes lock with Zaith’s as I nod, “Yes.”
“Then Markus, I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit! Arise and be made whole!”
In the second I go under, the water immerses me with a feeling of immense joy as I rocket out and embrace Zaith! I know it’s not You, my Lord, but Zaith will have to fill my embrace until I see You in Your kingdom.
Disciple Harim
Tales of Harim
Repentance… Surrender… Baptism.
Trusting in You and Your promises. Who would have thought that I could do such a thing? Hah, well I guess You, huh Lord?
To think, just over a week ago, I would imagine murdering people because of the war being held. And now, I’m here, ready to be baptized in Your name. And just as I ask for Your forgiveness, I hope and pray for myself to be able to forgive the very people who killed Leontes.
Watching Ron, Ves, and Markus all be baptized in Your name by Zaith, who just hours ago we thought was with You in paradise, has been such a blessing to my sight that in my approach to Your disciple, I am filled with joy that I am considered to be amongst these wonderful humans You’ve created. And now, You dwell amongst us, and we are blessed to have You!
But that is not all; we rejoice because of what God has done through our Lord Jesus Christ, who has now made us God’s friends.
Romans 5:11
In Zaith’s smile, as I finish embracing Markus after his baptism, I see the pride of a father. Through him is the Holy Spirit that shines the presence of Leontes but more than that, I feel You, our Heavenly Father.
Zaith extends his arms out, “Well, if it isn’t the passionate leader, Harim!”
“Here I am,” I respond.
“Here you are.”
“When you first came to us, I thought here’s just another Jew, just as zealous as the rest. Now, I see who you are through the eyes of our Lord.” I extend my arms to encompass our family, to show that You are ours. Not just Zaith’s Lord, but our Lord! In case that wasn’t clear.
He steps up to me and palms my shoulder, “I am so filled with joy to know that you all have accepted Him as Lord over your lives. As we finish our baptisms though, this new life you have will bring about challenges that will test your faith. I know the past day has been a test of faith, and praise Jesus, you all trusted in Him! But now, we must build upon your knowledge of His Word so you all can sharpen His sword and make disciples.”
Hearing Zaith’s words, given to him by the Holy Spirit, I enter a prayerful state of mind…
Heavenly Father
I hear You… I see You working amidst us. I feel Your presence surrounding us. Send Your trials so we can become who You always meant us to be. Test our faith so we can grow stronger in our weakness. As we build our lives on You, the formidable rock, the immovable stone, the everlasting foundation of Your spirit and truth, may we forever trust in Your Word! Lord, You are the light that lifts us to great heights! You are the pillar that we head toward. Reach Your hand out and we will hold tight!
Lord Jesus, I pray in Your great name
Amen
“Harim,” Zaith says with a soft tone, “Are you ready to give your life to Christ?”
“I am.”
“Then Harim, I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit! Arise and be made whole!”
In Harim’s rise out of the water, Your heavens open as the sun shines upon us with a fiery spirit coming upon each of Your children!
The Holy Spirit is alive and well in us, Your disciples… May Your disciple’s prayers guide others down the narrow path, to Your Word!
Heavenly Father
Thank You for sending Your Son to us. Thank You for sending Your Holy Spirit to us. Thank You for parting the seas for us. Thank You for moving the mountains for us. Thank You for dwelling with us through the storms and valleys. Thank You for Your loving kindness, Your faithfulness, and who You are! You are the Lord of our lives, the King of all Kings, the greatest of all, and You fill us so we can be with You in love and truth. May this story bring others to Your great story! Thank You, my Lord, for being with me on this journey through Your disciple’s prayers.
In Your mighty name, Lord Jesus Christ, I pray
Amen