In the liturgical calendar, January 9 is Baptism of Jesus Sunday. At WPPC this Sunday, we'll baptize and confirm six youth. What a great way to celebrate the baptism of Jesus!
When Jesus came up out of the water at his baptism, according to the gospel writers, the Holy Spirit descended on him and a voice pronounced, "This is my son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased." With this knowledge of his identity, Jesus is empowered to launch into ministry.
At their baptism and confirmation, I will anoint the youth this Sunday and pronounce that they have been sealed by the Holy Spirit in their baptism and marked as Christ's own forever. Those are pretty powerful words. Wonder what would happen if each one truly took those words to heart. How would it change their lives? What could they accomplish?
Freedom is a wonderful thing. We have a lot of it in this country, and we should be thankful. The dark side of freedom though is that we think we can go though the world making up our life as we go along. We have no sense that we are chosen or claimed, that we have a destiny or mission. We are left to wander, following our own appetites. Life lived in this kind of freedom can be very unfufilling.
Do you have the sense that you are claimed by God and that that claim matters in your daily life?
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