Location, location, location.
The nine people who have been baptized at Cedarcreek Covenant Church in Maple Valley, Washington, since last summer is more than the previous several years combined. That’s partly because the church relocated their worship space.
After Covid-19 forced the closure of the elementary school where they had met for years, the congregation started worshiping online. Then during the summer and early fall, they held services at a local park. The worship site was next to the river, which led people to suggest that it might be wonderful to have baptisms there, says Becca Worl, associate pastor. The first to be baptized in the river were two children.
Then adults followed. Some had made professions of faith years ago but had never been baptized. One man in his late 70s recently decided to follow Jesus and wanted to profess his faith through the sacrament.
The two most recent baptisms were on Easter morning in a portable baptismal pool at Kent Covenant Church, where Cedarcreek has been worshiping. “They have been so great to us,” Worl says.
Worl says when the weather turns nicer, the church will be going back “down to the river to pray.”
