Sunday August 23rd, we had our second outdoor Community Picnic gathering in five parks around our area. At three of these picnics people made the decision to be baptized as a public profession of their faith in Jesus: Kevin D. was baptized at Colt State Park, Jon T. was baptized at Warren Town Beach, and Natasha C. was baptized at Rose Larisa Park in Riverside.
Join us in celebrating and praying for them as they take this life-changing step of faith. Below are their baptism stories in their own words.
Kevin D.
Several years ago, a person who was very important to me passed away. The loss of this person changed my life and our extended family dynamics. Unfortunately, there has not been any reconciliation with family members and this has been devastating to me and my immediate family.
This season of my life brought other concerns including the health of loved ones, children moving away, the decision to move from our home of 30 years, distance teaching, and isolation because of Covid-19. These events have rocked, and continue to rock, my world.
During this time my wife convinced me to join a small group and attend a virtual class at BP. What a blessing the people in those two groups have been. It was at that time that I felt the strong arm of God pull me close and offer comfort and direction. I knew then that I wanted to be a follower of Christ. I am ready to be the clay that is molded by my Father, the ultimate potter, into the person He wants me to be. It is a journey that I am ready to accept with God's love, support, and much-needed guidance.
Jon T.
Making a choice to be baptized was the best decision I've ever made. It was a long time coming. My wife, Liz, prayed for me for years and God heard her prayer. I'm looking forward to learning more and growing closer to Jesus.
Natasha C.
I never experienced any “aha” or “life-or-death” moments that compelled me to turn to Jesus. Rather it is a collection of small, every day, backstories that have come together to allow those who will listen to see how the power and presence of God is greater than I could ever imagine. It is in these small moments and details that I’ve come to see that God has not and did not ever forsake me. That He is with me every step of the way.
My name is Natasha R., which, interestingly means the rose born on Christmas. Before I committed to following Jesus, I always felt I was looking for something to fulfill me and give my life meaning. In 2018, I submitted my application for the Master of Public Administration program at RWU. I want to share two paragraphs from my personal statement to illustrate how God was calling to me.
“For me, public service is not a career that I sought out and chose rather it is one that chose me. As far as I can remember, I have always been involved with organizations providing social and educational services to children and families that do not have access to those opportunities. Through my personal and professional experiences, I have become increasingly aware of the challenges and obstacles involved in ensuring that the most vulnerable members of society have access to good and quality health care, education, and housing, etc.
My undergraduate college experience was one of the hardest experiences I had to face, one in which I consistently found myself out of my comfort zone. However, this experience was also what ultimately made me understand how important it is to know who you are as an individual. Never before had I been exposed to privileged families with lifestyles and upbringings so different from what I knew. Although I was initially uncomfortable and insecure about my qualities that made me different, I learned to embrace the fact that I am a bilingual Latina who came from a working-class family. I proudly identify myself as a bilingual Latina and firmly believe it is my responsibility to continue working in organizations that serve higher risk communities.”
Little did I know, I would be standing here today to say that I now replace the words “public service” with Jesus. “For me, Jesus was not someone that I sought out or chose, but I am blessed to know that He chose me.” I spent most of my teenage and adult life running away and fighting my faith in God. Constantly facing walls of doubt built by the pain and disappointments I experienced in my life. In fact, I felt God was someone I was forced to pray to and believe in because that’s what my family did and what I did in school (I went to catholic school from 5th-12th grade).
I was facing a huge transition in my life, when I came to see that it is Jesus and God that I’ve been missing my whole life. I’ve come to learn that I desperately needed to go to God, surrender to Him in order to make sense of my circumstances. And most importantly, that I am a child of God and no matter what my imperfections are, He will give me His love and mercy.
I have read His Word every day since May 17, 2020, and it is without a doubt that I can tell you that “truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken” (Psalms 62:1-2). I experienced firsthand, that if I surrender to Him, by trusting Him with every cell in my body, that I can begin to rebuild and restore my life together with Him! That He will continue to show me purpose in life (now that I’m finally listening!).
I am excited to continue nurturing my seed of faith and my relationship with Jesus and God. I am most excited to do that with the BridgePointe community, but especially with the Quarry Street Crew who at the previous cookout when they saw me standing around like a lost sheep welcomed me with such love and kindness. At our Bible Study session on Monday, I read a section of the Quest Study Bible I had with me and I’d like to share that with you now to reaffirm how excited I am enter my new life with Jesus and His Church.
What values does a Christian family hold? (Zondervan, 2011, p.343).
"A Christian is someone who knows there is nothing they can do to deserve God’s love but who gratefully accepts and trusts in what God has done through the sacrifice of his Son, Jesus Christ. This faith translates into a life lived in love, gratitude, and service. The goal of a Christian family is to love God and love people."
I am overwhelmed with gratitude and thankfulness that I have found my spiritual family, being able to declare that we will intentionally make Him the foundation of our lives and to “strive to live according to God’s Word.”
I “stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured” (Colossians 4:12). I am not waiting another day to reach my full potential for God and to confidently say, “as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). I now proudly self-identify as a Christian bilingual Latina who firmly believes it is our responsibility to continue working together to serve higher risk communities” and show the world how Christians do this thing, we call life.