Sweet words from a little boy who wanted desperately to be dunked in the name of Jesus. I know what you're thinking...wow...they really brainwashed that kid...or...wow...he's too young to understand salvation...they must be pushing him to get baptized. Quite the opposite, dear friends...believe it or not. Please let me explain to you this story that is very dear to my heart. Whether you believe in Jesus or not, this story is probably worth your time. Take a glance with me into the heart of my 5 year old for just a few minutes.
Ranger has always been inquisitive. He's always asked questions. He's always contemplated information, stories, beliefs that have been presented to him or that he has experienced on his own. Austin and I are both Christians...which means we wholeheartedly believe that God is the Creator and sent his Son to die on the cross and forgive us of our sins. We decided before we even had children that we would raise them in a household full of love and share God's grace with them as best we could. In doing so, we take them to church, read them stories from the Bible, pray with them and for them, and encourage them to seek what God's plan for them is. Ranger chose to ask Jesus into his heart the day before his 4th birthday. Three years old. How can a three year old understand salvation, you ask? Well, I asked myself that same question for a year after we prayed with him about it. And every time I asked myself...I was reminded of Matthew 18:3 "And he said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.'" Kids have an incredible faith that of course slowly changes over time as they grow and experience new things in this world. Ranger's faith is unique. It's his own. He chose it. It's honest. And it has been so neat to watch. Now we attend a Baptist church which practices baptism...the practice of a believer publicly showing and telling others that he/she has accepted God's gift of salvation. We follow what Jesus did when he was baptized in the river by John the Baptist...dunked underneath the water and raised out of the water to show that sins are washed away and the believer is made new in Christ. Well, Ranger witnessed a lot of baptisms during his 4th and 5th year of life and constantly asked us if he could be baptized. We really wanted him to understand that baptism is not what gets you into heaven, but that it is just a picture of what he believes. Well, he picked up on that really fast. Mommy just didn't quite pick up on his understanding that much. I asked friends and family who in turn questioned if he was old enough to understand even salvation and that's when it hit me that it was time to talk to God about it. So we did. We prayed, and then we set up a time for Ranger to meet with our children's minister at church. She had a great talk with Ranger and it was amazing to hear him talk to her about what he believed. We all decided that he was definitely ready, so we looked at the next Sunday he could participate...it happened to be that Sunday. And oh that Sunday came quick...
Ranger must have told every person he met that morning that he was going to get baptized because he believes in Jesus. He couldn't hold it in. We brought him into big church to listen to Pastor Fleming since he was actually preaching about baptism that morning. Ranger wiggled and squiggled and whispered several times that he didn't want to listen anymore, he just wanted to get baptized. (Pastor Fleming's wife was sitting right in front of us...I was sure she was either going to turn around and shush us or just burst out laughing...) I thought Ranger was going to scale the wall and jump into the water. Finally, the time came to go back to the baptistry. The pastor offered anyone who wanted to be baptized that day a chance, so Ranger was not the only person to come forward. At one point while we were waiting to get settled, he leaned over and said, "Mommy? Do all these people believe in Jesus just like me?" Pastor George asked him if he was ready and he literally jumped for joy when he said yes. It was a beautiful moment to watch...Pastor George took him into the water and asked Ranger if he had accepted Jesus Christ. And I watched as my 5 year old confidently told over 600 people in the congregation "Yes." I can't describe his joy in detail...it was so beautiful, but I am fully confident that God smiled warmly that morning. Afterwards, I took him to dry off and change...he said..."Mommy, that was awesome. This is one of the best days ever. I made Jesus happy."
Its a memory that may fade slightly over time for him....but it will forever be engraved in my heart. God is good, y'all. So whether you believe in Jesus or not...a cool story to read. Faith like a child is a beautiful thing. May we all experience it in one way or another. But my real prayer is that each of you may experience God's grace the way Ranger has and come to know his Savior as well. This world is so much bigger than us. It was planned that way by an incredible Creator who loves you for you. His gift is free...and so incredibly worth it.
Way to go Ranger. Be a light in this world.
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