People of God, do you promise to support (the baptized) and pray for them in their new life in Christ? ( ELW pg. 228)
In this season of Epiphany and celebrating the Baptism of Jesus, I have had a series of events leading to reflection on my encounters with young people. Last week at Bible study we talked about the promises made in baptism - the promise God makes to us, the promise parents make to help the child grow in Christian faith, and the promise the sponsors and congregation make to nurture and support the newly baptized. Before church on Sunday, the pastors and I commended a local congregation that had produced several seminary graduates in the last few years. In the sermon on Sunday, the pastor told about his 8th grade Sunday School teacher that said that he would one day be a pastor and how that message was revealed in his life in spite of his original intentions. After the service, I had a chance to sit on the floor in the fellowship hall and give comfort to a little girl and her stubbed toe until her mom arrived. I felt inspired as I left church thinking about these moments and more. I may be Pastor to Senior Adults, I may of an “over-the-hill” age, I may not have young children at home anymore, but everyone of us has promised to nurture the young people that are in our church. I have a few church kids, of a wide variety of ages, that stay on my radar but I need to expand and be more intentional in what that means.
All these thoughts were going through my head as I proceeded into an intersection on my way home, halting half way through because the car ahead of me was stopped. A group of 6 teenagers were slowly sauntering across the street. The passenger in the car ahead rolled down the window and started shouting at them. The occupants of the car seemed to think it was there responsibility to instruct this group on proper etiquette in street crossing. Whether it was out of concern or anger, I will never know. However, I said to myself, “Why are you doing that? This won’t help those teenagers. It will only make them more angry.” At which point one of the boys turned and yelled at the car, “Just get going, old man!” The line-up of four cars in the intersection eventually proceeded on our separate ways, but I was left to ponder another event in my series of epiphanies.
Just what does it mean when I promise to support and pray for the children? What kind of involvement ? I see so many people just sitting back and doing nothing when young people are getting in trouble. Instead of getting involved, it is easier for all of us to talk about the lack of parenting skills and the decline of morals in society. So, how do I support teenagers in a way that is heard and received in 2012? Or maybe it is not what I say, but how I demonstrate care, concern, and supportive presence. Maybe I was getting it right for all ages when I was sitting on the floor in the fellowship hall with the stubbed toe - trying to see things from their perspective, listening to the cries, and just providing a little bit of my own kind of comfort and reassurance. It might work in the church, but what about on the way home? Modeling a Christian life at church is one thing, but what about at home, what about on the streets? It is a big challenge.
I’m not sure how this new challenge will be revealed in the year ahead, but I do know that every time I answer those promises of the congregation in the service of baptism, I will be thinking about what it truly means - and maybe you will, too.
