Daily Advent Devotion for December 14th - Clayton Hensley

A Christmas Baptism
By Clayton Hensley

Amy Grant’s, Tennessee Christmas, came out in 1983.  I quickly grew to love the song and it remains one of my favorites. Growing up in East Tennessee, I wanted snow at Christmas, but knew they always "had more snow up in Colorado.” A couple of years later, we moved to Virginia and the song became even more special, as I always looked forward to going back to Tennessee (often here to Maryville) to celebrate the holiday with family.  By the time I turned 30, I could only recall two times that I wasn’t in the Volunteer State on Christmas Day: one time we had to make an emergency trip to West Virginia, and the other time our engine on the van blew as it was warming up for the trip to Maryville.

 After the birth of our son in 2000, my wife and I decided to have him baptized at a small church in Northern Missouri where my wife’s mother grew up.  I was a bit hesitant about being out of Tennessee on Christmas Day, but even more concerned about dealing with the Midwestern winter.  We borrowed my dad’s car (which was much more reliable) and headed out a couple of days before Christmas for the 13-hour trip. I remember vividly, pulling into the parking lot of the Hy-Vee grocery store in Kirksville, Missouri, opening the door to get Will out of the car, and the wind chill of 50 below zero catching him off guard.

 

On Christmas Eve, which fell on a Sunday that year, the minister baptized Will, and then shortly after continued one of her Christmas traditions.  She pulled a rocking chair to the front of the church and had the children all gather around her.  With Will in her lap, she began reading the Christmas story and when the service was done, everyone in the Unionville United Methodist Church family gathered for a group picture as this would be Rev. Dow’s last Sunday at the church because she received a new mid-year appointment.

This touching moment reminds me of our connection through Christ and how we are all part of the same Family Tree.  I remember the congregation taking the vow to nurture Will in the Christian Faith and to take him into their care.  How many times have you taken that vow and how have you kept it? There was much love in the sanctuary that day and the love has never stopped.  And isn’t that what Christmas is really all about.