By Bob McAlpine – Alamosa, Colorado… Every baptism is special, but the Alamosa church recently celebrated two baptisms that Bob McAlpine, Alamosa pastor, will never forget–the baptism of his two children, Meredith and Tristan.
McAlpine recalls the weeks leading up to the baptismal date, saying those weeks “stressed me out. I saw all the petty acts of selfishness that take place between siblings. Worse, I saw how my own bad habits and sins (let’s just be honest, here) were shaping my children.”
There are two types of parents in the world—those who think that their children are perfect, and those who are pained by every little fault or flaw they see in their children. I’m the second kind of parent.
The question McAlpine kept asking was, “How can I baptize these so obviously imperfect children?” The answer came as he was reminded multiple times that baptism is not for the perfect, but for those who want to follow Jesus.
McAlpine recalled the blessing his children gave him while they studied for baptism.
“While I was serving them as a dad and pastor, my children were also ministering to me. They reminded me that Jesus’s love, in the words of The Jesus Storybook Bible, is a “never stopping, never giving up, unbreaking, always and forever love,” McAlpine said.
“Baptizing them was one of the highlights of my ministry,” McAlpine concluded.
Two students who attend the Alamosa Adventist school with Meredith and Tristan are making plans to be baptized later this month. Outreach continues at the school as half of the students attending are from different faith communities.
–Bob McAlpine is the Pastor of the Alamosa Church; photo supplied
