Martin Luther talked about remembering out baptism on a daily basis. While it was something that occurred in the past, it had lasting effects. It wasn’t a “one and done” type thing.

During Lent, this is what I ask. Every morning when you wake up, and every night when you lie down, make the first and last words you say to yourself the following.

“I am baptized.”

When you say then, make the cross on yourself. This could be a cross on your forehead, or it could be more of a full body cross where you touch your forehead, chest and shoulders.

It doesn’t matter how you do it as there isn’t a wrong way or a right now. God’s sacraments don’t “work” because of how they are done or who is doing them, they “work” because simply because they done. Any power or efficacy they have comes from God and nowhere else. (If you want to learn the fancy latin way of saying this you would say, “ex opere operato.” What this means it that the sacraments are not dependent on the person doing it that would be “ex opere operantis”, but rather, they “work” because of the grace of God.)

Try working either of those phrases into a conversation!

Grace and Peace,

Pastor Tim