March 9 First Sunday of Lent Geisler Baptism
Genesis 9:-8-17 A Covenant and a Rainbow
Mark 1:9-15
(Standing at the font hand moving through the water)
In the beginning
During the time of Noah,
When God wanted to begin
again . . .
During the time of Moses, the
people of
During the time of Jesus, he
had lived in anonymity for 30 years,
laboring
in the town of
His public ministry began . .
.
Through the ages water has
been seen by the church as a symbol of life and death.
Whenever something happens
with water, a new era dawns.
Today Elizabeth Ann Baron
Geisler will be led forward by her parents to enter the waters of baptism.
And many wonderful things will
happen.
Her big sisters will see
their baby sister be baptized and realize this must have happened to them.
Sisters will support sister,
parents
will remember their child’s baptism,
and as a community all of us will celebrate our own
baptisms
as we surround this family with prayers.
We will affirm the covenant
that God has made with us.
We
will proclaim that we are not our own.
In baptism God claims us and puts a seal on us us to show that we belong to
God.
God frees us from sin and death, uniting
us with Jesus Christ in his death and resurrection.
By water and the Holy Spirit
we are made members of the church, the body of Christ, and joined to Christ’s
ministry of love justice, and peace.
In baptism we are given a new
identity, as children of the covenant.
Through the waters of baptism
the Spirit invites us to reflect the covenant.
Just as the rainbow in the sky
is a sign of God’s goodness,
our lives are meant to shine
like a rainbow,
reflecting
God’s goodness in Christ.
How we live, pray, and care
for the world,
is
supposed to proclaim the covenant that God has made with us in baptism.
In baptism, God says: I will bless you and you will be a blessing
to the nations.//
This last week, I have
thought about Elizabeth Ann,
and
wondered, "how will we honor her baptism?"
How will we bless her and
show her how to be a blessing?
How we
will honor the covenant.
How will we bless the
nations?
I’ve also thought about the
many people in this congregation who have served in the armed forces.
Name upon name, some who are
young, and many who are older.
Some who served long ago and
some who are in the
Some who have been in harms
way,
and
some who have given their lives for something larger than themselves;
How do we honor those whose
baptism is now complete?
My prayer is this:
I pray that our actions will honor
the ideals of those who have joined the church triumphant.
I
pray that
I pray that our lives will reflect
the covenant that God has made with us.
I pray that our investments will
show that we belong to God.
I
pray that our expenditures will foster love, justice and peace.
I pray that our decisions may
shine like the bow in the clouds,
and proclaim
God’s goodness!
I pray that our actions will reflect
the saving power of this sacrament,
and preserve
life.
I pray for the leaders of
nations,
and I
pray for the miracle of peace.
Amen