Steps and Leaps of Faith

I grew up in a church tradition that had pretty set rules/guidelines for baptism and communion.  When it comes to baptism, I believe in a "believer's baptism" and there are scriptures that support that.  In the church I grew up in, you could not partake in communion unless you had been baptized.  I didn't question it.  It was just how it was.  I was baptized at the age of 13, and I admit it, there was a tiny part in my head that was really excited that I could take communion after that.

Did I think much about the biblical aspect of it?  Not a whole lot.  But I do remember thinking, as I got older, but before I was baptized, about the words that were spoken before communion.  They were always about believing in Christ's sacrifice and having a personal relationship with Jesus, and if you believed and were saved, the Lord's Supper was an invitation to you to commune with Jesus.  And I sometimes didn't think it was fair that I couldn't, simply because I had not yet taken the step of baptism.

Most of the churches I've attended serve communion once a month.  The churches I attended in New Zealand both served communion every week.  The second time I lived in New Zealand, I had older children.  My son, who was about 5 or 6, watched the communion plate go by every week, and, in this church, watched all of his friends partake along with their parents.  He would ask if he could and I always said no.  I didn't feel he had a true understanding of the Lord's Supper and why we partook in it.  And that was, and maybe still is, very likely true.  However, I no longer made as close an association with baptism as I had in the past.  To me, the two weren't necessarily connected.

The church I attend now is a communion-once-a-month church.  On Sunday, we had communion.  At the same time, the separate "Kids Church" that my children normally attend during the service, doesn't run in the summer, so my boys were sitting with me.  The sermon itself was on preparing your heart for communion, and there were verses on the kids' page that they were given as we came in.  As our pastor talked, my 6 year old asked question after question about it, and I had the chance (yes, during the sermon) to discuss what communion means and how we prepare our hearts.  My 6 year old son has a deep interest in the Bible and constantly asks me to read his brother's bible to him.  I really need to get him one of his own (not just the storybook version he currently has, but a real one).  He has a pure and unadulterated faith that is quite inspiring.  There was no doubt in my mind, as I explained communion to him, that he had an understanding of it.  When it came time to go forward, my 10 year old son held back.  He said he didn't feel he was ready.  Knowing him as I do, it could be awhile before he does feel ready for deeper spiritual things, and that is okay.  But my 6 year old was confident and sure of his heart, and sure of his faith in Christ, and I, in turn, felt confident, leading him by the hand, to the front of the church to partake in communion.

As we walked forward, I thought of what a natural step of faith this was for him.  In his child-like faith, he probably didn't see it as momentous as I did, but he was solemn and respectful and I sensed God was pleased with this young disciple.  For me, it was more than a step, it was a LEAP.  I took a leap of faith, in moving past tradition and understanding the truth of scripture, and also not simply giving in to a child asking to take communion "just because".

As I get older, I am challenged in a lot of areas of my faith, simply because of the tradition I grew up in.  Don't get me wrong, I still highly respect the things I was taught and I believe the vast majority of them to be godly and biblical.  But then there are certain things that I know God wants to show me, outside of the box.  I'm in a charismatic/Anglican style church now, both of which are completely new to me, but I am being refreshed in my faith, by seeing God in a larger light.  It doesn't make my past churches wrong, in fact, I think it does just the opposite, as God shows me the multitude of styles makes no difference.  Seeing the hearts of people within all these different styles is what matters.  Hearts focused on Christ, staying true to scripture, are the markers, not the style or "rule" for communion.  Scripture is very clear on proper attitude and how we come to the communion table, and that was made very clear for me on Sunday.   I knew peace and joy as I held my son's hand and we walked back to our seat.  And in that peace and joy, I knew God's joy in our steps and leaps of faith toward Him.