June 2017 Newsletter Article

Last month, I wrote to you about the Lutheran emphasis on community service ministry, sharing my joyous experiences with the Fulton County Social Service Committee. After the fact, it occurred to me that that article would be a great kickoff to Trinity’s celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, a celebration that will be at its peak around October 31 (the date on which Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on a church door in Wittenberg, Germany in 1517). My newsletter articles for you in the coming months will each explore a different highlight of our great Lutheran tradition.
 
This month, I emphasize here God’s great gift to us of Holy Baptism. Now, many of you have probably discovered by now that I talk about Baptism a lot in my sermons, and that is because Baptism is one of the most important things God has given us. We are baptized once--washed once with water and God’s Word--but the effects of Baptism last a lifetime, as we are given forgiveness of sins and eternal salvation through this sacrament.
 
Baptism is a gift God freely gives us, without any work or particular worthiness of our own, and if you have ever received a truly wonderful gift, you know how difficult it is to ever thank the giver enough for such a gift. Thus, each day of our lives is an exercise in saying “Thank you” to God for the gift of Holy Baptism as we die each day to sin and rise again to new life in Christ (Romans 6:4 & Luther’s Small Catechism).
 
Here are some ways that you can say “Thank You” to God for your baptism:

1. Either aloud or silently, thank God when you turn on a water faucet.
2. Thank God whenever you travel near a body of water. Thankfully, our home here in Spoon River Country means that we can find that water without traveling very far!
3. You can even use 21st-century technology to thank God through a fun ongoing  project we will call Remember Your Baptism Selfies. In your travels, pause at a body of water, thank God for your baptism, and snap a selfie or family picture (with the water!) on your phone or camera. Then, email your pictures (with captions if you want) to the church office, and we will post them in an album on the church Facebook page! I will post my first few selfies in the album as the month begins. 

 
So, as our celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation gets into high gear over the coming months, let us all daily thank God for the gift of Holy Baptism that unites Jesus’ followers in God’s care--no matter the denomination of Christianity to which we belong.