By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer
NATCHITOCHES – When his son Cort was born, Josh Currie wondered what baptizing him would be like should that blessing come to pass.
Nine years later, a variety of emotions overcame the pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Natchitoches as Cort publicly declared his faith and was baptized by him.
“I was joyful and a little relieved,” Currie said. “When he was relieved of the burden of sin and he had experienced salvation — to now make that decision public through baptism, I felt like at that moment it doesn’t matter what else happens in his life.
“I was baptized by my grandfather and I can remember when he brought me back up in the air he was so happy,” he continued. “I remember his excitement more than anything else from that day.”
His son concurred.
“I felt joy from head to toe when I was baptized,” Cort Currie said. “I had never felt anything like it before.”
LEGACY OF FAITH
The older Currie pointed to the crucial role Christian parents serve in a child’s spiritual development.
But he also lauded various faith-based activities such as Sunday school, Christian camps and Vacation Bible School for contributing to the solid biblical foundation children need in making a spiritual decision.
Currie said his son peppered him with questions for three years and that this relentless pursuit led Cort to a saving knowledge of why Jesus died on the cross for him.
“When he made his profession of faith he was able to do it himself because he had reached that level of understanding,” Currie said. “The legacy of faith handed down to me from my father and his father continued through him and he’ll be able to continue that legacy. It’s one of those things I always have been waiting for.”
BAPTISM BOOM
Cort is one of 20 people Currie and David Mercer, minister of music and youth, have baptized at Trinity in 2016. This number is nearly triple the church’s annual average for baptisms, since Currie became pastor in 2012.
The sharp increase is due in part to bringing Mercer on staff, Currie said. The addition has allowed for more emphasis placed on the youth ministry, and youth comprise more than half of those who have made professions of faith and been baptized.
Importantly, the energy from this group has penetrated other areas of the church as well:
— This summer, Trinity held a block party in which a number of connections were made with the community.
— The congregation performed several service projects which also were well-received by its neighbors.
— The church experienced an average nightly attendance of 85 at its Vacation Bible School, an increase of 30 from 2015.
Future plans for outreach include establishing a chaplaincy program to minister to area law enforcement and launching chapters of both Royal Ambassadors and Girls in Action.
The congregation has embraced the vision Currie shared with the church when he was called as pastor. He said God made us relational beings and Trinity seeks to be a place where that God-given nature can be nurtured.
“It boils down to relationships,” Currie said. “There are a lot of friendly churches in the world today but what we are trying to do is help people connect with one another so they are not just a member of a friendly church but they have a connection with someone from the church to do ministry together.
“People are looking to be a friend with someone within the body of Christ,” he continued. “If people don’t find that, they fall through the cracks because there is no camaraderie there. If we expect people to plug themselves in and do everything on their own, we are setting them up for failure. But if we plug them in and encourage them to work with others in a group, they will be encouraged and more successful.”
