Gabby's Baptism

We really had a lot going on the past week and a half. Our most special event happened Saturday when Gabby was baptized.

For those who read my blog and don't know much about baptism or why we baptize older children here are a few things:

We follow the example of Jesus Christ which He set for us in the scriptures:

Matthew 3:13-17

13 ¶ Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be ^abaptized of him.

14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?

15 And Jesus answering said unto him, ^aSuffer it to be so now: for thus it ^bbecometh us to ^cfulfil all ^drighteousness. Then he suffered him.

16 And Jesus, when he was ^abaptized, went up ^bstraightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the ^cSpirit of God descending like a ^ddove, and lighting upon him:

17 And lo a ^avoice from heaven, saying, This is my ^bbeloved ^cSon, in whom I am well pleased.

We know that Jesus had no sin and yet He had need of baptism to
fulfill a law of God. We believe that all, except for little children, must
be baptized to enter into the Kingdom of God and to be counted among His
people. Christ had the same need as we have to be baptized for that
reason. He set the example before us. (This wasn't supposed to be indented but blogger is way too limited and won't let me put it back to normal!)

We baptize by immersion as Christ was. That means the person being baptized is fully immersed in the water. It represents a burial and re-birth and symbolizes a new life we are about to enter.

We also believe that our children are innocent and free of sin until about the age of 8 when they reach what we call the "age of accountability". Christ has told us in our modern scripture that Satan has been denied the power to tempt young children until they have reached an age of accountability. Christ also said that young children are already saved unto Him by His mercy and have no need of baptism.

In my opinion, this is so important because it gives the children time enough to learn who Christ is, where they came from, who they are as children of God and to know reasonably well how to make good choices. Of course this learning continues through life but by the time they are 8 they are reasonably able to understand choices and consequences and make many of their own decisions. Also, they have time to develop a faith and testimony of God and Jesus Christ.

When we are baptized we make sacred covenants. One is to do our best to keep the commandments. The other is to take on the name of Christ. It is important for the child or anyone getting baptized to have a testimony of Jesus Christ because, in taking on His name, we are a representative of Him in all that we do. We are examples of the love of Christ to those around us. This is often hard to remember but as we go through our lives we improve and do better. We take the sacrament each Sunday to remind us of our baptismal covenants and renew them. It lets us start off fresh each week as if we had been baptized each week.

I asked Gabby to share her testimony with me:

I know that the church is true and that Jesus lives even though you can't see Him. I believe in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost and that Heavenly Father and the Holy Ghost are real. Jesus Christ sacrificed His life for us so that we can live again.

I know she has a love for Jesus Christ. I heard her asking her sister Samantha how she felt one day when we were driving in the car and she shared her love for Him with her. It was really sweet.

After baptism we are blessed by the laying on of hands (the priesthood holders stand in a circle and each place a hand on the person's head to give them a blessing. This can get very heavy if there are a lot of men in the circle and there certainly were for Gabby - I think she's and inch shorter!) to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. We believe that the Godhead is made up of three distinct and individual personages. Our Father in Heaven, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost whom we also refer to as the Spirit. The Holy Ghost witnesses to us the truth of all things. He serves as a guide and companion in our lives helping us along the way as we listen.

Here are some pictures from Gabby's baptism:

With her father who baptized her. She was so pretty in that dress!

With her family and Taber grandparents:

Welker grandparents and uncle Mike. There were several cameras out there and I was trying to get them to look at mine. Hence me pointing my finger. Darn.

Grandma Phaire:

(I'd hoped to get one of just us but it didn't happen. Oh well.)

And some of our guests who came to share in her baptism day.

The program went as follows:

• We sang "When I am Baptized" that starts out: I like to look for rainbows...very fitting for a Gabby who's favorite color is "every color of the rainbow"
• Our home teacher, Br. McFarlane, gave a talk on baptism
• Her father batized her and then while she changed the missionaries did a presentation for the guests while they waited.
• Her grandpa Taber gave a talk on the Holy Ghost, especially on listening to Him and knowing the things that we need to do throughout our lives.
• She was confirmed a member of the church and given the gift of the Holy Ghost.
• Bishop Broadbent gave some closing remarks and a ward welcome.
• To close we sang "I'm trying to be Like Jesus"
• My dad, her grandpa Welker and my brother, or her uncle Mike were witnesses to make sure the baptism went successfully - ie, nothing on her person floated to the surface of the water before the immersion was complete. My mom, Grandma Phaire, gave the opening prayer and Alan's mom, grandma Taber gave the closing prayer.

We had a nice little party afterward at our house:

Good food and good friends.

And a wonderfully full living room with lots and lots of tots!

Thank you to everyone who came and shared this time with Gabby. I hope she'll remember it. I asked her how she felt when she came out of the water:

I feel good.

That was the spirit telling her she'd done good. We're so proud of her and we hope we can continue to teach her, with the help of the spirit, all that she needs to get her through her life and to continue to have faith in Jesus Christ.