Baptisms

Our first real experience here in Guatemala was the baptism service. Our missionary, Julio, a pastor in this area, gave a talk about what it means to be baptized. It was one of the clearest presentations I have ever heard, even through a translator. We were under a large hut, and nearby was a nice pool. Fifteen young men and women had expressed interest in recent months in getting baptized. They have taken this decision seriously and have prepared for this moment. They waited till this week to get baptized, and I found out later that they questioned why they were waiting for the Americans and whether we cared. When I learned this, I was super eager to express to them how special we indeed thought it was. I was the team member in charge of getting together baptism gifts for each of them. The baptism service was especially meaningful to me because I had poured over their names as I gathered cross necklaces for them and wrote messages to them inside a book called "Promesas de Dios." (The man sitting next to me on the plane from Dallas was Guatemalan, and I had asked him to translate a message for me to write in the kids' books. He was happy to help!) It turns out preparing the baptism gifts was the most stressful and yet most rewarding of all my preparation.

They boy in the video is named Kevin. He was the last to get baptized and had a special story. Kevin had expressed interest in being baptized months ago. People persuaded him not to. I found out later his parents really did not want him to get baptized, and they had put pressure on him that very morning. This was a very difficult decision for Kevin, but he talked a lot with Julio and understood what baptism was and really wanted to make that decision. He said that morning that he knew that if he got baptized it would bring trouble for him. Still, he pressed on and did what he felt was right. It is amazing for me to watch courage and devotion like this when I know that it comes at a cost.   Our brother Kevin and the other 14 teens baptized encourage me.