A New Creation

     So, yesterday I made the decision to get baptized...Again. When I was about 10 years old I got baptized, the first time. I remember the day, it was a sunny, summer afternoon at a church picnic and the closest body of water was a gravel pit that had been filled with water at a nearby housing development. I remember being too shy to give a testimony like the adults who were getting baptized and simply nodding my head when the preacher asked me if I believed that Jesus was LORD. And that was that.
    But as I've grown and begun to learn more about baptism and what an important step it is in one's choice to follow Jesus, I began to wonder if I should do it again, this time from a place of deeper understanding of what it was I was doing. And let me tell you I turned it into a inner struggle and I let fear dictate. But finally, yesterday morning, I made the decision and so friends and family gathered at the church to share this moment with me.
     I know that baptism has become a rather polarizing topic in the church today. I know that I have personally struggled with it and it's importance. But I've come to the conclusion, that honestly, it's a silly argument. Jesus asks His followers to do it, so of course it's important.
     This year, I had decided that my theme was going to be "Growing in Grace." I wanted to learn more deeply about living each and every day in that beautiful grace that, The One who calls us by name, offers. I think this decision I've made is part of that learning. So there you have it...
   

Colossians 2:12

"Having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised with Him through your faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead."

Acts 22:16

"And now, what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized, and wash your sins away, calling on His name."

1 Peter 3:21

"And this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also, not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience towards God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

2 Corinthians 5:17

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

The Choice

        I have found that the early moments in the morning, right when I'm first waking up, are the ones that fears often like to invade. So often, I open my eyes and am suddenly hit with a deluge of worry, fear or anxiety. I have come to realize that this happens because if the fears can get me down at the very beginning of the day, I'm pretty much down for the whole day. This can be very annoying and frustrating.
         Then, the other day, I woke up and the words of Joshua 24: 15 floated through my head. They say, "Choose this day whom you will serve..." And it occurred to me. Every single morning I need to wake up and make a choice, I can either choose to serve the God who loves me by trusting in Him regardless of how I feel, or I can choose to allow fear to have a grip in my life and drag me down with every passing day.
        And so, I have been trying this over the past couple of days. Fear has still tried to find a footing, but I am trying harder to consistently make the choice. And you know what, as I have been making a more conscious effort, I have been able to step back a little and see things from a different angle. Also, I have found that when I make the choice I feel more peace and closer to Jesus. Because, when I stop trying to make things right by myself, I allow God to step in and do what He does best.
         So, my challenge to you is that you would wake up every morning and consciously make the choice. Choose to trust in the One who loves you more than you will ever know. Choose to rest in His grace. Choose to not allow fear and worry to be a part of your life. Choose to live.

Joshua 24:15
"Choose this day whom you will serve...But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."

“A man is happy so long as he chooses to be happy and nothing can stop him.” 
~Alexander Sozenitsyn



“The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live.” ~Flora Whittemore