One of my greatest joys as a pastor is the privilege that is given to be with people during some of the most intimate and sacred times in their lives. Last evening provided a couple of profound opportunities for me to do this.
Yesterday afternoon I was finishing up some things for a wedding when I received a phone call from a new mom, a woman who I had connected with a couple of times in the previous week as her twins have been in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. I had just been with the family on Friday morning, and was surprised to hear her voice on the other end of the phone. It turned out that her little girl wasn’t doing well and the doctors thought she might not make it. This mom wondered if I would be able to come to the hospital and baptize both of the babies. I explained that I had a wedding at 6:00 and would get to the hospital as soon as I could, probably about 7:30.
I began to make preparations for a small baptismal service as my heart broke for this young couple. I then had to shift gears back to the wedding and finish up preparations for that service. I wasn’t able to totally stop thinking about the young family and their twins, but I did manage to be present for the wedding and the beautiful ceremony, a time of celebration that was full of the Spirit and God’s presence as we celebrated the Bride and Groom’s love. Tears were shed by the bride and groom and by their families as we celebrated the goodness of God’s love in the midst of that place.
After the wedding I wrapped things up with the bride and groom, gathered up my things, and headed to the hospital. The twins, their parents, the mother’s parents, a couple of nurses, a chaplain from the hospital, Heather (who was along for the ride with me), and myself gathered together for a time of prayer and I baptized these two beautiful babies. As I offered words of encouragement and hope and as I baptized these two children, tears were shed and I felt God’s presence in clear and profound ways.
Though these two events were drastically different – the wedding with months of planning and much joy and the baptism that became urgentally needed and planned and was full of much saddness, God was powerfully present in the midst of both and I feel richly blessed to have been a part of them both.
4 Comments
September 7, 2008 at 2:31 pm
I’ll be glad to pray for those two sweet babies as well as their parents.
September 7, 2008 at 4:29 pm
Jeff – Thanks for sharing the stories. Wow, that is a large dichotomy in the feelings of the events. Sounds like God worked through you in each scenario.
September 8, 2008 at 9:11 pm
Wow. I’m glad that there are those of you that are called to be pastors. It must be an amazing journey.
September 18, 2008 at 8:02 am
[...] Clinger shares of Celebrating Life in two very different [...]