My baby is getting baptized on Saturday.

She puffs out her chest just thinking about it.  She is so excited.

The other kids are excited.  They can hardly wait.

They’ve been prepping her and talking things through with her for weeks.  (Mostly the fact that she should probably work on quitting her whining before the big day 🙂

Max is excited.  He is baptizing her (which kinda makes my heart swell).  She somehow got hitched on to that idea last year when someone told her Max would be old enough to baptize her when the time came.

Oh boy she loves that brother of hers.

It is so exciting she gets to make this special covenant in China.  It is something she will never forget.

Amidst all the excitement and preparation, I have had mixed emotions.

First of all, she is my baby.  Getting baptized is a pretty big indication that she’s growing up, gosh darn it!  But second of all, this is Lucy.  I have pondered over whether she is really ready.  Does she really understand it all?

In our church we wait until children are eight so they can make their own decision to be baptized.  By the time they’re eight they have a pretty good gage of their free agency.  They know what is right and what is wrong and they have a pretty good concept of God and Christ.

I so want my children to understand this step of faith they are taking. I want them to understand that it is a covenant they are making with their Heavenly Father to follow His Son. I want them to understand that each week when we take the sacrament at church they are renewing that covenant. I want them to understand that they are following Christ’s example. (For more about baptism click here.)

We’ve had most of our other kids have some sort of missionary discussions in preparation for their baptisms (more on that back here).

But preparation for baptism is a little different in China.  We don’t have missionaries here.  We don’t have a church building.  We don’t even have a font.  (We are using the home of a family who lives nearby who have graciously offered to let us use their big spa tub…the closest thing we can get to a font over here.)

In the midst of my apprehension, wondering whether this little girl of mine is ready or not, she has taken it up a notch in her prayers.  She has cracked us up with how she follows along and sounds out the difficult words when she reads her allotted two verses each time it comes to her turn in family scriptures.

And then, a couple weeks ago we were sitting in church.  During the sacrament Elle nudged me and pointed to Lucy.  This is what I saw:

I couldn’t resist taking a silent picture of how seriously she was taking that reverent time.

Maybe she was just thinking about how much she wanted to color right then (she doesn’t get to color until after the sacrament).  But I like to think she was connecting her little heart to God.

Yes, I believe that little spirit of hers is ready for Saturday.

Sure, there is always more to learn, no matter how old you are.  But every now and again, because of some insightful observation she makes or sweet question she asks, I think Lucy is more ready than I give her credit for.  Sometimes, when all is quiet and I can cup her cheeks in my hands and look right into those beautiful blue eyes of hers I feel the love God has for that girl He has entrusted to our family.

And I’m so grateful for all that her little soul full of faith teaches me every day.

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15 Comments

  1. So good! I'm not LDS, but my 8 year old daughter decided she should be baptized. In our church, people tend to wait until they're older – until they are SURE they understand and are making this decision for themselves. However, my daughter understood. She knew that she had accepted Jesus as her Savior and she understood that we are called to be baptized as an outward expression of our inward change. How could I say "no" to that? We actually baptized our girls in our pool and I have to tell you it was the best decision. They were surrounded by 40 people who love and care for them and it was a very special, intimate time. Baptizing Lu in a tub, surrounded by those who cherish her is going to be the best!

  2. Such a beautiful post! Thank you for sharing. All the years we lived in eastern and southern Africa, my husband performed baptisms in many places. It does make for special memories. Enjoy!

  3. My own baptism is on saturday and I am so exicted. And I am so happy that Lucys own is on Saturday too. I read your blog for a while and I know the church for a short time now. But I am sure that I make the right decision. Wish you all the best and a beautifull,special day.
    Greetings from Gemrany
    Diana

  4. Our 16 year old (at the time) baptized his brother and it was such a special experience for both of them. It will be special for Lucy and Max, too. Congrats to Lucy and I'm sure it will be a wonderful day for your family.

  5. i am so excited for my lucy girl! and since jonah baptized me when he was 16, i think she made the right choice with max. it's a special bond they will share forever! i love it. love you guys and still dying to skype!

  6. Congratulations to Lucy! To bad she can't be baptized in a local river, but i know that is impossible. When we went to China, I left my scriptures back at home just incase anyone might get the wrong idea. Didn't want to spend any time in jail.

  7. Awwwww!! I'm so excited for her! That picture of her during sacrament made me soooo happy and the fact that Max is baptizing her is just the best! Can't wait to see pictures!
    Congrats Lucy! 😀

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