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Rev. Woody Leypoldt baptized me as a baby at the Albion Methodist Church. In the United Methodist Church, when we’re baptized as infants, the parents promise to raise this child and teach them how to be a Christian until they can make up their minds. Then, at age 13 or so, they confirm the promises made for them by their parents when they were baptized and do confirmation to become full members of the church. The congregation also promises to help the parents teach this child how to be a Christian. From baptism to confirmation, they are preparatory members. Many times at their baptism, I’ll lift the baby and say their full name and proclaim that they are a new member of the family of God. I also make the point to the parents that this child is not going to listen to them until they get to be 30 years old. But they will learn what it is to be a Christian by watching them, how they treat each other, how they treat their friends and neighbors, how they treat family, and how they treat their enemies. And you never know how far that family of God is going to stretch. Carol Sandsted, a member here at Trinity’s Dad, Rev. Andy Anderson, was my pastor at Albion during most of my growing up years. Virginia White, here at Trinity, was one of my Sunday School teachers at Albion Methodist Church. All my kids were baptized by their grandfather, my Dad, Rev. Gil Karges; Katie in Charleston; Zack at Albion; Emily at Ainsworth. Most of the time, Cindy and I were serving separate congregations. So we’d invite both churches and our families to a Sunday afternoon baptism for our kids. So, the family of God for my kids is a large extended family. They’ve been a part of up to eight congregations as we’ve served as itinerant United Methodist pastors over the years. Today, Cindy and I (Grandmama and PaPa) will baptize our grandson, Andrew Ward O’Brien. He is the second child of our daughter, Katie, and her husband, Eric. Cindy and I had the honor of baptizing their first child, Connor Kelly O’Brien, in Durham, NC, as a part of Katie and Eric’s second COVID-delayed wedding at the chapel at the Duke Divinity School, where Cindy and I went to seminary. For Connor, the representatives of the family of God included both his parents’ families and their friends from high school, college, and Duke Law School. Today, Trinity’s congregation will make the church baptism promises on behalf of Katie & Eric’s home church, Mt. Olivet UMC, in Arlington, VA. And the family of God will continue to grow! Grace & Peace,