This definitely was the most memorable and special moment of my entire life!
Why get re-baptized? For starters, I don't have any real memory of me getting baptized. I can faintly recall when I was 8 years old being in a pool in someone's backyard, where I possibly could have been baptized, but when I ask my parents for confirmation, they hardly remember either. For such a special occasion, if it cannot be remembered, then it didn't count or wasn't worth much (of an impact that is). Baptism is personal. It is a personal commitment you make in public before the Lord. Matthew 10:32 tells us, "Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven." My decision to get baptized stemmed from my commitment I made 5-years ago that I was re-dedicating my life to Jesus.
I grew up in the church. My parents would take me to a Christian church from the time I was born to around Jr. High. I loved every minute of it too! I was such a little spit-fire and passionately loved Jesus. Then it all happened one day, we stopped going to church. As the separation turned into a drift, it later was followed by a new lifestyle of anxiety, fear, peer pressure and just trying to “fit in.” I never woke up one day and thought in my heart, Jesus really isn’t the son of God, I just drifted. I became a product of my environment and that environment was Jr. High. Jr. High became a playground of people pleasing and approval chasing. Anything to make people like me or think I was “cool.” I desperately tried to erase myself and mold a new image of what I thought would be acceptable or popular in the eyes and opinions of others. That people pleasing mindset and never-ending game-chasing left me in a pool or regret, shallow purpose, and empty heartache of sorrow. This whirlwind of confusion continued on through High School and even more so in College.
It wasn’t until a bad break-up with a seven to eight years of complicated on-again, off-again delusional commitments under my belt that I clung to the hope of finding peace in Jesus, again. I was that prodigal daughter who came running back to her Heavenly Father, crying out for help! It was a process non-the less, but a process so worth fighting through. After six months of going back to church and feeling that tug and pull on my heart like a tug-of-war on my soul, I made that leap of faith to surrender my heart to Christ and NEVER LOOKED BACK SINCE. That was the single most best decision I have ever made in my life. Jesus has change my heart and my whole world for the better. He has given me worth, purpose, value, self-esteem, and love that I have never experienced before.
So, when I say baptism is personal, it has such a special place in my heart. Now the meaning and purpose of a water baptism is more important and special than I realized. Not because you must get baptized to go to Heaven (only accepting Jesus into your heart is needed for that. See scriptures - John 15-16, Romans 10:9, Acts 16:31, and Ephesians 2:8-9) but the symbolism it represents. We have buried our old way of doing things (our old nature) just like Jesus buried our sins and rose from the dead. In that same way, we have raised up in Christ sharing in his death, burial and resurrection. Just like one of my favorite scriptures says in 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!" Not only is our past behind us when we are born again, but we also are remade as entirely new creations because spiritual awakening brings a new life. #IHaveDecidedToFollowJesus
If you would like more information on baptism and what the Bible says about it, I highly recommend listening to Pastor Ryan Visconti's message from Generation Church, The God I Never Knew | Does He Baptize? If you live in the surrounding area and looking for a home church to attend, you can visit Generation Church home page here.
