Let your Light Shine

There are some days when the words just don't come.  There are some days which are so full of God's presence that it's almost too much to take in.  There are some days when all one can do is simply say, "Amen."  

Baptisms are definitely one of those days.  

Last week, Christ and Trinity Lutheran celebrated with Lilly Logan and her family on her baptism day.  It was a day where we publicly gave thanks for being called and claimed and marked as children of God.

Getting ready for the day, I shared with the confirmation students and invited them to write letters to Lilly.  Their faithfulness and love is beyond words.    

Dear Lilly Grace, 

When you are baptized, you become a child of God and become forgiven.  You are cleansed by the purifying waters.  May God cleanse your soul.  We love you. 

Dear Lilly Grace, 

You will LOVE to be baptized!  You might not think about it much and what it will mean to you, but it means a lot.  You will feel cleansed, loved, and forgiven.  

Love, the Confirmation students

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God, who is rich in mercy and love, gives us a new birth into a living hope through the sacrament of baptism.  By water and the Word God delivers us from sin and death and raises us to new life in Jesus Christ.  We are united with all the baptized in the one body of Christ, anointed with the gift of the Holy Spirit, and joined in God's mission for the life of the world. 

Lilly, child of God, you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever. 

Jesus said, I am the light of the world. 

Sustain us with the gift of your Holy Spirit:
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord,
the spirit of joy in your presence, both now and forever.   

We welcome you into the body of Christ and into the mission we share:
join us in giving thanks and praise to God and bearing God's creative and redeeming word to all the world.