Baptism

Baptism at Sunday in the Park - Group 4

Bryce Thomas

Hi, my name is Bryce Thomas. I am eleven years old. I grew up in a great Christian home. My parents talk to me about God and it really gets to my heart. When I was in third grade we learned about the book of Esther. It is now my favorite book. I was amazed how you could see God, even though he was not mentioned. It made me realize that God can show his power even when his name is not said. It made me have faith in him even though I can't see him. I then accepted Jesus in my heart because I know my sins are forgiven, through Jesus dying on the cross and he has a place for me in heaven. I am now getting baptized to show that I know that he created the world and He is the only one who can save me and be by my side forever. My favorite verse in the Bible is at the end of Esther 4:14. It says "And who knows but that you have come to your Royal position for such a time as this." This means to me that even in harsh situations when God seems far, he is there beside you and is moving when we can not even see him and uses ordinary people to show his power. God helps me when I am sad and down. I can open up my bible and be shown lots of amazing things about how great he is and how safe we are in his hands.

Angie Moore

I was blessed with being raised in a wonderful household with two loving parents. I was raised with Christian values and attended church services at a nearby Methodist church. I accepted Christ as my Savior while I was still a child. My grandparents and mother knelt beside me at the altar while I asked God for forgiveness and for Christ to be in my heart. I meant that prayer from the bottom of my heart and I felt renewed after that special moment. Through my teens and early twenties, I floated between the values and teaching of the Bible and the evils and temptations that the world offered. As I aged and had children, I continued to struggle between doing with God's will would have been for me and what MY will was. Most of the time, I selfishly chose my own will.

By walking my own path, I began to struggle with alcohol addiction, failed marriages, and lost friendships. When my son was diagnosed with autism, I was filled with anger and instead of running to God I decided that I knew better and could handle life myself. My anger and self-pity drove me further into alcoholism until I finally reached a point where I just needed to believe there was a better way. My first step out of addiction was attending Alcoholics Anonymous. Within those meetings, I was re-introduced to our God. Our Father. I sought him in my helplessness, and He picked me up off my knees and made me whole. He drew me close to Him and healed me from my alcohol addiction. Thanks be to God; I no longer have a desire to drink. I only desire to serve Him, to seek Him and allow HIS Will to be my compass. Since I have been restored through the grace of God, my life has been brighter, been lighter and I feel His presence daily. The Bible says:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift from God --Ephesians 2:8

That is not to say He has taken trials away from me. My son almost died two years ago. It was a terrible moment, but as I sat in the IICU waiting room, speaking to the clergy, not knowing if my son would live or die- I felt His presence, His Love and His Peace come over me. I knew He was in control and my son is alive today. He has delivered me, and I am so grateful everyday for His Love and grace as I strive to live each day according to teachings of Christ.

Jesus said to his disciples in John 6:35-38:

"I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and anyone who comes to me I will never drive away; for I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me."

Baptism at Sunday in the Park - Group 5

Charis Desiato

My name is Charis, and I am 9 years old. I accepted Jesus into my heart May 1. When I accepted Jesus in my heart I was inspired by my Bible. And I knew the Bible was not just some fairy tale and I believed it. I'm here today because I believe God has truly cleansed me from my sins.

One of my favorite verses is Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and courageous, do not be terrified, do not be discouraged for the Lord will be with you wherever you go".

Madison Dahl

My name is Madison Dahl, and I am 11 years old. My family and I have been going to church my whole life and attending LEFC for 6 years. One night when I was 7 my brother, sister and I had a lot of questions about Jesus and about how you know you're saved. That night, my mom answered a lot of questions and prayed with me to accept Jesus into my heart. I realized the only way to heaven was through Jesus and His death on the cross.

When I am sad or having a bad day, I know Jesus is with me. I can also give my friends hope that there is someone that loves them and wants a relationship with them too. I try and share what Jesus has done for my life every chance I get and as I grow in my relationship with Him, I want my friends to see a difference in my life.

I now want to grow closer in my relationship with Christ by reading the bible, praying, and sharing the good news of what Jesus has done in my life.

One of my favorite verses to share with my friends is Romans 5:8, "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

Ava Weaver

Hello, my name is Ava, and I am 10 years old. I was raised in a Christian home, so I grew up going to church and believing in Jesus. When I was 8 years old, I accepted Jesus into my life and asked him to take control of my life. Before I came to Christ, I still had him as my Lord and Savior, but I didn't understand as much as I do now. I saw from my parents and all of my family members that I need Jesus and we all need Jesus.

My family really was a great help to come to Jesus - it would be so hard to become a Christian in a non-Christian household. I praise God for that. I love God with all my heart, with all my soul and with all my mind. Here are a couple verses from Psalm 146: "You have searched me Lord and you know me; you know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways". God knows our every move, he knows what we're going to say even before we know what we're going to say.

Now that I am a Christian, I am here to make my faith public by getting baptized as a way to show I love God and he is in charge of my life. Letting Jesus into my life was a huge step in my life but it was one of the best days of my life. Now I am standing here proclaiming my faith. I have grown in my faith and love since then. Even when I do stupid mistakes every day, he still forgives me and gives me so much mercy and grace. Let Christ be magnified in me and help him use me in his big perfect plan. Jesus has a great plan for everyone. He is my god and I love him with all my heart, soul, and mind.

Ruth Kleinschmidt

Hi I am Ruth Kelinschmidt. I live in Ireland and came to Lancaster for a year. LEFC is the church that my grandparents attended and over the past ten months I feel like I have become part of LEFC as well. I grew up in a Christian home, but I accepted Christ into my heart when I was 8 years old. My life has had ups and downs, but I know that no matter where I am in my life if I am sad and lonely or happy and cheerful Christ is always there with me guiding me.

I accepted Jesus into my life when a woman at my church in Ireland spent the time to tell me about Jesus dying on the cross for my sins and that I could live forever with Jesus in heaven. She also explained that I could have a relationship with Jesus and that having a relationship with Him is a very special thing.

I am very blessed to have Jesus in my life. Jesus makes me a better person and a better Christian. When I was younger, the Bible was read to me often, and I was told about Jesus dying on the cross for my sins to be my savior. I was young so I thought they were just words, and I didn't completely understand them, but since I have had a relationship with Jesus I understand the Bible more. I also appreciate Jesus more knowing that He died for me. Jesus was innocent but he died for the guilty, one of the guilty people is me. The relationship I have with Jesus now is strong and I hope it grows stronger as I grow. Today I would like to thank my Pops and Pastor Tony for helping me grow in Christ and being here today to baptize me.

Drew Stief

My name is Drew Stief and I am a senior at Messiah University. I was born into a family with loving parents and siblings, an older brother and sister. Impacted by my family, I decided to give my life to Christ at a very young age. By the grace of God, I truly believe I've been saved since that moment, however it wasn't until more recently that I understood what it meant to be a follower of Jesus. Growing up I had faith, but it did not have a great impact on my life. I sought after the things of the earth to fulfill me and bring me happiness. I allowed things like sports, friends, and my emotions to dictate what I thoughts my true identity was. Trying to be fulfilled by the things of this earth caused me to constantly be searching for greater purpose in life because those things failed me time and time again. It all started to change in my later school years, I had a wake up call from God that made me realize I could be gone from this earth at any moment, and what would I have lived for? Finding the answer to that question; I realized my life was not on the right track. I would like to say that I did everything that I could do to change my life there in that moment but that would be anything but the truth. The truth is that God did everything he could do to make me realize that I'm his son and he is my true purpose in life. This did not hit me all at once and change my life right away, but the seed was planted. Two of the ways that God put me on the right track in life were, putting me in the right place at Messiah and putting the right people in my life, specifically my girlfriend Catie who has been a Christ-like influence on me and has been guiding me closer to God over the past five years. Once I got to college, my heart really became on fire for the Lord. This past spring break my team took a trip to Colombia which was the best 10 days of my life. At the end of the week, having experienced God's love so tangibly, I realized I never had to doubt God again. Up until that moment I had an inkling of doubt in the back of my mind, but now I can truly say I will never doubt him again. I don't want to be naïve and think that challenges don't lay ahead, but I know the Holy Spirit will guide me home.

What does this mean for my life now and in the future? The answer to this is found in my favorite verse, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled, and do not be afraid." -John 14:27. The Statement in this verse that God does not give as the world gives, but instead gives hope and peace that is everlasting is this most important thing in my life. He has saved me from my sins and the ways of this world.