The 6th Sunday of Easter Year B-baptism letter

The 6th Sunday of Easter Year B May 6, 2018 A letter to Marin Tarpley and Payton Hunt upon the occasion of their baptisms Dear Marin and Payton, On this day of your baptism, I want to share with you some of Jesus’s parting words to his disciples as he tries to prepare them for his death and resurrection: “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.” As you embark on this journey of faith that begins today and will last throughout your entire life, you can carry in your heart this promise from Jesus. But what does it mean? What does it mean to abide in Jesus’s love? How do we do that so that we may taste that elusive joy which he promises? One way of thinking about this, Marin and Payton, is to hear his words a little differently. Jesus is actually telling his disciples and us: “make your home in me and I will make my home in you.” Now, this is something you girls know a little more about. Your parents have created for each of you a home where you are safe and secure, where you are loved and cherished, a home where all your needs are met, and where you are loved beyond all measure. By making your home in this home already created for you by your parents, you already know something of what Jesus means. You grow and you flourish in this home. You will stay there until you are ready to be out on your own. You will learn from those who love you, and you will teach them as well. (I suspect, even though you are both quite young, you have already taught your parents a good bit!) You will bring certain gifts to your family, and they will learn how to use them, and you will all work together to grow you up into a healthy, joyful adult. So making your home in Jesus’s love, abiding in Jesus’s love, is similar. It requires the same things: connection, dependence, and continuance. You are connected to Jesus; you learn about him through your parents, godparents, grandparents, Sunday school teachers, and the other caring people in this your community of faith. We promise to teach you about prayer, the chief way that we are connected to Jesus, and we also promise to try to teach you to “seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself.” You remember that you are dependent on Jesus. At some point, sweet girls, you will fall. You will fail. You will be heartbroken and weary. In those times, we must all help you remember that you may cast your cares on our Lord, and that he will show you the way that you must follow to be returned to his joy. And the final way of abiding is continuance. This means staying put, blooming where you are planted. Today you are being baptized into the body of Christ in this particular community of faith. We make promises to you and to God that we will work to support you, to nurture you, to help you connect to God and with all of us, but you must be here for us to do that. In all of these ways and so many more, Jesus makes his home in us, and we make our home in him. But, lest you get bogged down in this to-do list as a way that you can achieve this joy that Jesus’ promises, you must remember the final part of what Jesus says to us this day: “You did not choose me but I chose you.” The grace of God, the joy of Jesus and the gift of the Holy Spirit have already been given to you. You have already been chosen by Jesus, claimed as God’s beloved from the moment of your birth. There is nothing that you can or have to do to earn this. All you have to do is abide in it. And that is the beautiful truth of this day. May your life be lived at home in the God who loves you, and may you know and taste God’s joy on this day and on all days. Your sister in Christ, Melanie+