For many American Christians, getting baptized isn’t a difficult decision. I was baptized when I was 7 but it was still meaningful and a public display of my relationship with God. All the people I was displaying that to were Christians. This month I experienced something new.
We lived in a little town called Apastepeque where Catholicism runs the town. About 88% of the people are Catholic. If you are born into a Catholic family, you are expected to ive and die Catholic. For those who choose to convert to Christianity and have a relationship with Christ, they are persecuted. The small church we worked with was solely made of youth between the ages of 12-30. The only married couple were are newly wed hosts. The youth are incredible. They are all very young Christians and are daily learning what it looks to walk out their faith. Their testimonies are filled with challenges and persecution but they continue to walk forward. Our hosts had been walking the church through the meaning of baptism and a few of the youth decided to be baptized while we were there.
Watching the ceremony brought tears to our eyes because this was an incredible and bold decision for our new brothers and sisters. Some were physically or verbally abused by their families for becoming a Christian. One of our sweet friends was kicked out of her home because of attending the baptism ceremony. This was true sacrifice. I honestly don’t know what that is like. Their life is hard, yet they live with courageous passion.
The ceremony was a beautiful celebration! The bright sun and rolling ocean waves set the stage for this memorable event. As we worshipped, you could see true hunger for Jesus in their faces. I have never felt so much excitement and joy for a baptism. It was a sign of true sacrifice and surrender to the King of kings. That is what pure obediance looks like. I saw what it truly looks like to walk out Matthew 10:37-39
“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
