A Baptism as None Other...

Now that I have returned and actually read some of what I wrote on the blog, it occurred to me how much I had left out, not purposefully, of course, but simply because of time constraints -- there is so much I have not had a chance to write about from our trip!

One obvious example is the baptismal service which happened one Sunday afternoon in a quiet place, a spring that feeds the Jordan River in Israel. Here is how the lovely afternoon went.

First Pastor Tim Boal baptized Pastor Bob and then Pastor Bob baptized Pastor Tim and several of our team members. Perhaps the funniest moment was when Steve Knight dumped Pastor Bob in the water at the beginning of his baptism.
Unfortunately, I didn't capture that for you... Steve was too fast and Pastor Bob didn't take that long to submerge either. It was truly a great moment but one that will have to live only in our memories. Or perhaps other team members took a picture of it. I sure hope so!

But I did capture some of the emotion of this special occasion as some of the couples got to be baptized together. It was so obvious that they were moved to be doing this in the land where our Lord once walked. I know that this was very meaningful to all of them.

I tried to take as many pictures as possible but had a hard time keeping my reportage stance when it was Galen Moomaw's turn to be baptized. Both Galen and Pastor Bob were teary eyed, especially when Pastor Bob reminded us of the Christian heritage that Galen's parents had left and Galen in turn passed it on to his children. He also talked about the tremendous impact Galen has been allowed to have in our church.

It was a very emotional experience to all of us and as one taking pictures I struggled with whether I should just witness the moment or record it. In the end, I did both, to the extent I could and I am so glad I was able not only to take shots but to capture the essence of this moment on a video, which I am hope to post here.

This was truly a moment that will remain in our memory for a long time. Please keep scrolling to watch video.

Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade

itrindade@woostergrace.org