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I Got Baptised, No Joke! April 1 – The day of practical jokes. As I was contemplating a date for my baptism, it was suggested to me to get baptized on the 1st of April. I promptly replied, “Get baptized on April Fools Day? Baptism’s no joke.” The thought of baptism being no joke made me think back to when I decided I needed to be baptized and what it meant to me. All my life I had the idea that being baptized was something you just did because, being brought up in the church, it was the normal thing to do. For several years I had plans to be baptized with this friend, or that friend, but it never came to anything. Now I know why, because I wasn’t ready in my heart. I kept putting off following Jesus in my personal life, and yet I attended church and did the right things, as I was taught to do. Some things bothered me, but I kept thinking, “later.” “Later, when I get to New Zealand, I’ll turn my life around,” but when I got here, the Devil was just as active in keeping me undecided as he was while I was in Australia. For months I tried, and tried, but still I was holding back. Things then began to happen. The experience of a pushy, worldly young man who really wanted to be my boyfriend, scared me into realizing how easy it is to give in if we are not connected to Christ. I thank God for Christian parents who talked me through it, and helped me to see the dangerous path Satan was trying to push me onto. But still I hadn’t surrendered to God. But God did not give up on me. One night I had a dream. I dreamt that it was just before the close of probation, and that there was a certain sign in our characters that would indicate we were not sealed. I had this certain sign. Then I turned to my friend and said “We’ve missed out.” There was a horrible feeling of finality, and of certain doom. I awoke with a feeling of despair and fear. I tried to push the dream aside, and forget about it, but it kept nagging me. Not long after, I went to the World Youth Convention in Croatia, and the Sabbath Service was what I needed to make my decision to fully surrender my life to God. At first, it was hard to stay true to my decision, as the old habit of putting off until “later” kept rising. When I returned home, I started Bible studies again in the hope of being baptized in February. February came and went, and so did March, and I still wasn’t baptized. The question arose, “WHEN will I get baptized?” The suggestion of the 1st of April was the most convenient time for my friends and family to attend, being a Sabbath. As I believed this was a serious matter, not to be taken as a “joke”, I was dead set against it, but in the end I realized it would be then, or who knows when. It has always been my dream to be baptized in the ocean. Sabbath, the 1st of April turned out to be a “fine” day (cloudy, but no rain). Thirty-five of us gathered together at Whatipu Beach to witness my baptism. The tide was out, which is what we were praying for, as that beach is known to be dangerous. I was baptized by my Dad, and having Bro and Sis Southwell there was special to me. My Dad read me the Bible verse “He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” Micah 7:19. As I came up from the water I thought of the verse, and realized that all my “laters” were now at the bottom of the Tasman Sea. What a happy thought! I had been to so many baptisms, but this was “MY” baptism. It was special. Looking back on the day, I’m glad I got baptized on the 1st of
April, because it reminds me that the step I took then wasn’t a
joke. Being baptized doesn’t mean we won’t have any more problems
with our experience, but helps us to keep to the commitment made to God.
I just want to say to all you young people who aren’t baptized yet;
“Don’t put it off for ‘later.’” |
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