Water Cooler Baptisms // 7.28.10
Baptism is the symbolic expression of a person dying to sin, being cleansed by the blood of Christ, and then being raised to new life in Jesus as a believer. In Haiti, baptism is the way that a new believer is identified and publicized as a true follower of Jesus.
Here’s the problem, there is close to no clean water in this place. There are creeks and rivers but you don’t want your head under that. The fresh water comes in little packets that the people squeeze and drink. Running water is a rare luxury. So, the issue with baptism is basically…how and where can it happen?
Yesterday, it happened in a water cooler.
As we finished the demo site, three street kids walked up to me and asked for a ‘dollar american.’ I grabbed a translator and told the boys the following:
Me: I want to give you American money but there is something else worth more that I would like to share with you. Tell me about yourselves.
Them: Okay. We live on street. Our families cannot give us food and clothes so they put us out to survive in our own. We are walking the street to find supplies to sell and market. We hope to be bought and used for work and stuff. Nobody wants us.
Me: So, you have no home and no families?
Them: Yes.
Me: And you hope to be bought and used as, well, slaves for work?
Them: Yes.
Me: Do you have a few minutes to talk with me about family, acceptance, and love?
Them: Yes.
The next 15 minutes involved sharing of Gods great love for them through Jesus mission on the cross. I did this through using the familiar salvation bead bracelets as I explained each color. As I explained the beads and got to the need to be baptized in obedience to Jesus and also as an announcement to the world that you believe in Him, there was a crazy request…
The boys wanted to be baptized. Right now.
This was huge because in this culture, baptism solidifies the commitment. This was also huge because we had no water. None. Only nalgene water bottles and a cooler.
A cooler.
I called our team over, shared the news of their decisions and our team sprung into action. We filled the cooler with three of the 5 gallon water jugs. We got the boys Haitian bibles. Then, we gathered around and celebrated their baptism and commitment.
Each boy professed their decision and it was incredibly moving to see the joy on their faces as i picked each one up and they were vertically submersed…in a cooler. The applause of our team and the smiles on their faces came together in a collision of joy and praise.
God is so good and He has shown that to us here. His glory will come to Him in many ways. He chooses to use us to spread his fame to he world around us. Our responsibility is to listen. And what we hear may seem crazy at first, but I have to admit, then end result is always amazing.
Especially when it’s three baptisms in a water cooler in the slums of Haiti.
So good.
