Editor’s Note: This is the first in a four part sermon series on baptism in the United Methodist tradition.
One of my favorite pleasures in the world is to rent a canoe or an inflatable kayak and head down a river. For me, there is nothing more enjoyable than being on the water, and letting the current pull me downstream as I enjoy God’s creation. I’m not particular — I’ll take the white water of the Ocoee one day and the gentle thrills of the Sequatchie the next. The important thing is to get out and connect with God on the water.
A couple of years ago, a group of guys that I meet with regularly went out for a day on the Harpeth. Now we all know that the Harpeth isn’t the most exciting river in the world. It’s pretty flat and boring and meanders through a bunch of farm land, but it’s close and we decided to make a day of it. It was a crisp fall day and the weather was clear. We rented a couple of canoes, and headed downstream.
Thing were going good for the first part of the trip. The water was calm and we were having a good time talking. It had started to warm up and we were even thinking about pulling over to the side and wading in the river for a bit, when we rounded the next bend and saw it. A large tree had fallen in the river, creating an obstacle. The current seemed to go right under the tree, but there was a 3 or 4 foot space of clear water on the right hand side that we could just get our canoes through. Mark, the other guy in my canoe, and I didn’t think it would be too hard — after all, this was the Harpeth and the current couldn’t be that strong. So we got over to the right and attempted to thread the needle. We didn’t make it. As soon as we got close to the tree, the current pulled us left and turned our canoe sideways into the tree. Immediately we tumbled out and our canoe started to go under from the weight of the current pushing against it. The boat was wedged between the tree and the current, and Mark and I pulled with all our might to get it free. At one point, Mark slipped and I was afraid he was going to be pulled under the tree too, but he righted himself and with a last burst of energy we were able to free our canoe from the hands of the current and pull over to the bank, where we both lay out of breath after our struggle.
You see, what we learned that day is that water is deceiving. We looked at the gentle stream and saw safety and security, nothing that we couldn’t handle. As we found out, the flowing waters were dangerous, with a power all their own. If you don’t respect that power, you can easily find yourself in trouble.
