My daughter was baptized today. At teen camp this summer she started to understand the connections between all the lessons she learned in Sunday school and what Jesus did for her on the cross. Although she had a lot of questions - some of them difficult questions - and her understanding was incomplete, she began to make self-motivated changes in her character without any pressure from, well, me or her mom. Her younger sisters said they "really like the new Meggie."
Then some of her more experienced friends led her through a series of Bible studies that ended at the foot of the cross. Two Thursdays ago, Megan came to me somewhat frantic and in tears. She said that God could not help her, and she kept saying this. At this point I'm thinking metaphorically and responding, "Megan, God knows your heart. He's all around us. He's never not helped me and he's there to listen to you." But this is not what Megan meant. As she explained her thought process I began to see this wonder of a child growing up and taking responsibility for herself. "Dad, if God separated himself from Jesus when he was on the cross, well then I'm separated from God right now and there is nothing I can do about it. My sin is separating me from God. I don't want to be separated from God."
She thought deep and long on the subject and connected the dots herself. She also faced a number of deep character challenges on her road to this point. Her maturity in facing ambiguous and difficult questions that may take years of experience to answer encouraged me. The ability to keep going in the face of ambiguity will serve her well.
As a father, the most challenging aspect of my daughter's journey was that, once I understood what she told me about her separation from God, I could not do anything to help her. I was helpless. This is a gap that only God can cross, and this decision was between Megan and God. And then at her baptism I felt like God was there. Not the mystical "God is talking to me through his spirit" but God was there as a friend and the only one who could solve the problem very pragmatically letting me know "I got this one." For Megan, this is the end of the beginning.
This is a sweet post - good for your daughter! I remember that time in my own life ... sometimes I wish I could go back to that simple understanding of salvation. Thank you sharing :)