A sense of humor helps sometimes
March 7, 2008 (Friday)
Yesterday I wrote about my own baptism and mentioned various circumstances of baptisms I conducted through the years. Almost all of them went well, without incident. Others have not been as fortunate. I mention a few. Identifying the people might prove embarrassing to them, so they shall go unnamed.
There was the pastor of the big church in Oklahoma, who walked into the baptistry as he had on many occasions, but as he looked out at the congregation, he smiled, and announced, “I hate to tell you this, folks, but there is not a drop of water in this baptistry.” Baptism postponed.
Then there was my friend in Central Texas, who worked long and hard, witnessing to a rough-hewn character to whom he had taken a liking. The two men liked each other, hunted together, recounted their military experiences, and generally enjoyed each other’s company. Finally, the bosom buddy of the preacher surrendered his life to the Lord and prepared to be baptized. On the evening of his baptism, he climbed the steps to the landing above the baptistry, where he remained unseen, but not unheard, by the congregation. “Preacher,” he whispered, “Is that water cold?” “No,” the preacher replied, also in whispers, “It’s not cold,” and he extended his hand to steady the new convert for his descent into the pool. As the man’s foot touched the water, he shivered, and said in a loud voice, “The hell it’s not!” Oh, my.
A few miles east of that church is a country church with a long and glorious history in that area. A few years ago, the pastor prepared to baptize a man in his eighties. He stood in the water, and looked to the door, hidden to the audience, through which the aged convert would enter the baptistry. As the elderly gentleman appeared in the doorway, the preacher’s mouth dropped open and he rushed through the waters to stop the man from coming into full view of the congregation. The great old soul was totally nude! Fortunately, the pastor stopped him before others saw him. Surprise, surprise, surprise!
Most baptisms take place as they should, without incident. For that, we are thankful.