First Ocean Baptism in the Books
Holy Week is always a holy time, but it's so easy to get caught up in the busy. This year though, I started it off with a focus that's hard to beat. Monday, April 3, I headed to Mayport Beach for the joy of baptizing and receiving into our congregation Amanda.
Amanda started worshipping with us around October of last year after driving past the church. She saw the banner for our "Christianity for Atheists" sermon series. The first time we talked, Amanda explained that she has identified as agnostic for years, so the banner caught her eye. She went home and looked us up.
The first time we met, Amanda had taken a vacation day to attend worship. She wanted to see the church she had been watching online. Her days off are Monday and Tuesday, making participating in person challenging. One of the first things she said was how thankful she was for our content online so she could be a part.
We started to meet together to answer the questions. Months have passed with phone calls, coffee meetings, and text conversations. A few weeks ago, her question warmed my heart more than any other–when could we schedule her baptism?
In the picture above, you see Amanda in blue, her mom to her right, and Chris in black. Chris and I have been co-leading a class on Monday nights that Amanda is in.
I couldn't imagine anyone else I would have wanted to be my first baptism at Fleming Island. I'm almost as excited that she's also my first baptism ever in the Atlantic (as a panhandle girl, I've always gone to the Gulf of Mexico.)
Join me in welcoming Amanda to Christ's family and the Fleming Island UMC family!
Amanda started worshipping with us around October of last year after driving past the church. She saw the banner for our "Christianity for Atheists" sermon series. The first time we talked, Amanda explained that she has identified as agnostic for years, so the banner caught her eye. She went home and looked us up.
The first time we met, Amanda had taken a vacation day to attend worship. She wanted to see the church she had been watching online. Her days off are Monday and Tuesday, making participating in person challenging. One of the first things she said was how thankful she was for our content online so she could be a part.
We started to meet together to answer the questions. Months have passed with phone calls, coffee meetings, and text conversations. A few weeks ago, her question warmed my heart more than any other–when could we schedule her baptism?
In the picture above, you see Amanda in blue, her mom to her right, and Chris in black. Chris and I have been co-leading a class on Monday nights that Amanda is in.
I couldn't imagine anyone else I would have wanted to be my first baptism at Fleming Island. I'm almost as excited that she's also my first baptism ever in the Atlantic (as a panhandle girl, I've always gone to the Gulf of Mexico.)
Join me in welcoming Amanda to Christ's family and the Fleming Island UMC family!
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