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Monday, May 7, 2012

Forgiven



Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. -Hebrews 10:22



Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. -Matthew 3:6
 


Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. Romans 6:3-5


I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.- Matthew 3:11
 

For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 1 Corinthians 1:17


Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. -Matthew 28:19


Yesterday was such a powerful day. My husband got baptized.


If you've followed my blog for anytime at all, you'd know that we are believers. And I am not ashamed to say my husband is the spiritual head of our household, just as the Lord commanded in the Old Testament. Jon is a true man of faith and trust, I couldn't have asked for anything more in a husband and role model in Christ. Jon and I were both baptized as children and I was baptized about 6 years ago at our church. Being baptized as an adult is incredibly different than as a 6 month old baby. You make that decision on your own. 

Baptism is an outward expression of an invisible faith...a proclamation that you follow Jesus Christ...proudly. The thing I found most powerful about being baptized as an adult was submersion. So moving to be dipped into the water and come out alive and forgiven in Christ. And to have made that decision in my heart, on my own

Our church has baptism Sunday a few times a year and I remember a few weeks ago hearing it was coming up. I remember nudging Jon and saying, "you should get baptized!". Baptism doesn't always mean you are a new Christian because in Jon's case, he was just praying for the right time. Saturday night we had a bad storm and I ended up being awake for a lot of the night. Jon has been having some back pain too. So I woke up on Saturday and found Jon in the living room and asked if he wanted to just live stream church at home. His response was, "no, I am going to get baptized today". I had totally forgotten that Sunday was baptism day. Jon had been up for 2 hours praying about it and he felt like he could have easily blamed back pain and skipped. Or said yes to me and watched church from the couch. But the Lord tugged at his heart.

As we prayed with someone before Jon was baptized, tears streamed down my face as I squeezed my husbands hand. What an incredible thing for a wife to experience. Her husband professing his love and following for God in public. People cheered as he stepped down into the pool...hooting and hollering for him (and his Baylor shirt). He was all smiles. What a celebration!!!!




 Thank you for all your encouraging words and prayers.




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42 comments:

Unknown said...

Love it!

jessi bridges said...

What a blessing to be able to witness his baptism! That is SO cool! Ben and I got baptized together a month before our wedding. Definitely a day I will never forget :)

Susan said...

Such a special day for you both to share!! I was baptized as an adult too and it really is such a different thing when you know and understand what is happening!! God Bless! :)

Lia Joy said...

What a special moment! My husband will be baptized in June and I'm so excited for him. :)

Unknown said...

How beautiful is that!!! The hubby and I want to get baptized again soon, too! God bless you guys!

XO Lori

Lani Derrick said...

I cried reading this post. I understand completely. I was baptized a second time as an adult and it was very different than when I was 6yrs old. A beautiful moment, I'm glad you got to share it with each other.

Allyson McGuire said...

What a beautiful testament to y'all's faith.

Karla said...

I am at work and I am dabbing away tears.. that picture of you hugging your husband is incredible! I can’t even begin to imagine the joy! I was baptized at the age of 13 alongside my brother and my father. I pray one day that will be my husband coming out of those waters.

KRISTIN said...

LOVE THIS! Congrats Jon! How special.

Becky said...

Baptisms make me cry. Every time. Apparently, even baptisms on the internet make me teary! Congratulations on this step of faith!!

Jessica said...

LOVE IT!!
so touching.
may God continue to bless you both!!!

Happy Monday

Kerrie Williams said...

that's so great! Doing it of your own understanding and will is really the point, isn't it? To show the world that you're committed to Christ. Beautiful photos of a beautiful moment :)

Jane {In The Pink & Green} said...

This is awesome Ruthie! I was baptized as an adult as well and it's so awesome to make that public declaration of faith! It's so neat that you were able to capture it all, what a special weekend for you guys! :)

Heather @ Finding Beauty in the Ordinary said...

I had tears in my eyes through this whole post. I think this is one of my most favorite things ever. Congrats to Jon, this is so amazing! Love that he felt God leading Him and followed through-- what an amazing example! xo

Joanne said...

Really relieved to see I wasn't the only one shedding a couple of tears from this, baptisms are so amazing, I find myself crying at each one. Your words are soo sweet ruthie, congrats to your hubby! Ah! So awesome.

Danielle said...

Oh Ruthie! So beautiful! I always cry when I see people get baptized (I really don't know why, it is involuntary) and I cried when I read this post!

...at my desk at work...

Unknown said...

Wow Ruthie that is so awesome! Praise God. I am so encouraged by your faith in Christ even just through blogging you are both such a blessing.

Katharine said...

Wow! Congratulations! This is just so encouraging. I believe God has more in store for your family. I will be praying for you and your husband tonight!
God bless!

Miki {Becoming What I Always Was} said...

What an awesome experience. I'm glad you two were able to share it :)

Amanda said...

I didn't realize that getting baptized again as an adult was such a thing, but I'm so happy for you both! It's amazing how he came to that decision on his own.

Krista said...

That must have been so awesome for you to experience. What a great Godly man you got there :)

Anonymous said...

Love these photos! What an exciting and beautiful time for you both!

Meghan said...

That is so awesome congrats to Jon! Isn't it amazing watching the ones you love get baptized? My brother and dad got baptized in March and it was so cool being able to be there to see! I was baptized as a baby and then made the choice when I was 15 to be baptized as a personal choice!

angie on maui said...

Ruthie, this was such a beautiful post; it really spoke to me this morning...thank you so much for sharing such a special moment with us. I admire you both for your faith and for your ability to express yourself the way that you do here on your blog. You are such a blessing here in the blog world!

xoxo

Lauren H Edmondson said...

Yay! My husband grew up in a Methodist church and was baptized as a child too, but we attend my Baptist church where I was brought up. He was baptized a year after we got married and became an "official" member of Webbs Chapel and it was truly one of the best moments of our lives. So happy for ya'll, it's so nice to see a blogger that is so proud to walk in her faith.

Unknown said...

What a wonderful thing for a wife to witness! Love the pic of you two hugging, so so sweet :)

Anonymous said...

I am a new follower of yours and I just wanted to tell you how completely beautiful and touching I found this entry to be. I have tears in my eyes sitting here reading this. The love you can feel within your faith is something I wish everyone would allow themselves to experience.

Kate

Annie said...

It's so encouraging to see your husband follow Christ in this way! Thank you for sharing this with us, Ruthie.

Girls Love Fried Pickles said...

That embrace picture is so telling. Why? Because God embraced you both to be together. This was beautiful.

Karen said...

Absolutely beautiful!

Carita said...

Beautiful beyond words! It is always such a joy getting to follow your blog and see how the Lord continues to work in your heart, your husband's heart and in your family's future. Love you both!

Lauren said...

Amen! Have a great week.

Anonymous said...

I absolutely LOVE this post! Such a special day.

Heather @ we.are.the.holdens said...

Gosh I love this Ruthie on so many levels. So proud and happy for you guys as a couple. I know God has big things in store for ya'll. Can't wait to see... love to you.:)

Christina said...

That's awesome!

Brooke said...

This is so beautiful. I have been praying for someone like your husband in my life. I get so caught up in being single sometimes and think maybe I should just settle. But in reality, I don't want to settle. I want someone who is a great Christian strength and leader of our home, just like your hubby. Yay for him getting baptized!

Wendy said...

Beautiful Ruthie! What an amazing day for both Jon and you! Prayers! :)

Kristin said...

LOVE!

Tiffany said...

This is amazing. I just posted a few days ago about my baptism. It is a truly amazing moment in life.

Lisa @ MMT said...

How amazing! I love that you and your husband have such a strong faith and that you write about it on your blog. It's one of the things that attracted me to your blog and you really inspire me.

Julie Keller said...

I absolutely love how you are so open and free with your religion on your blog. It's a huge part of your life, and I'm so glad you share it.

yours truly said...

These photos have such peace and pureness to them. Congratulations to your husband! I love reading all your posts about your faith and how unashamed you are to share it with everyone.

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