Gabriella's Baptism at Old Orchard Church

Isaiah 43:1-3
But now, this is what the LORD says—
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the LORD, your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…

Like Jacob—Gabriella is an heir of a promise that came before her time. Today we celebrate God’s faithfulness to both Jackie and I, and to our little girl. Our prayer is that these words which are directed at God’s people, will fall on the heart and mind of our daughter as though they are for her… Because we believe that they are for her… and for all those who are heirs of God’s promise to Abraham some 3500 years ago. We believe all of life is a repercussion of that promise.

But, in Abrahams life and today we all know that life is hard… Not all the time, and there certainly are moments when life is filled to overflowing with joy, like right now… We have a new baby! There is so much hope and longing bound up in having baby. We are already making plans for her life, the things that we will see and do, conversations we are going to have, trials which we will overcome… The potential is very joyous. But the irony of life is made clear from the very first moments that a child enters into the world. The parents experience the jubilation of being so intimately involved in this mysterious process of creating life, and months of preparation and worry come to a head in the labor and delivery room. But the child, as it enters into the world, probably has a more realistic and healthy perspective on things. What is the first thing they do?? They scream! Through the raw and graphic nature of childbirth, life enters into the world, and the first thing baby’s do is scream! That is the irony of a broken world—jubilation and pain.

Life is jubilation and pain… As much as we want to protect our daughter from the later, they go hand in hand…

This passage gives us hope today in the midst of our own experience of this irony and for a certain future reality that this irony is going break the heart of our child. Our prayer is that at that inevitable point when Gabriella faces the raw reality of this broken world, that she will hear God whisper these words into her ears, “Fear not child, I created you, I formed you in your mothers womb, and I have redeemed you! YOU ARE MINE!!!

Jackie and I want Gabriella to believe that God can and will part the waters and provide a way out against all odds just as he did for Israel! Our prayer is that Gaby will know that God is with her. That she will never know the utter despair and loneliness of a life separate from her heavenly father.

When life’s circumstances seem certain to sweep her away— When the intensity seems certain to incinerate her— Our prayer is that Gaby will know God as her Protector. Our prayer is that she will know God as a real help in times of trouble.

As a father I am sure to fail my child! That is another sad and difficult irony in this life of jubilation and pain… But God never fails us! Our prayer is that when the inevitable troubles come, she will hear our Father in heaven whisper these words in her ears, “I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior sweet child! Come and rest in me!”