Whiter Than Snow

"What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus."

So goes an old hymn that is sung often in our little church, and one that I love. It confused me as a little girl...how could you wash in blood and come out clean on the other side? It seemed gory and gross to me then. I didn't want to be washed in blood! Thank goodness we outgrow the literal mindset of early childhood, huh?

Psalm 51:7 says, "wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow."

Yesterday, Rachael followed through with her decision to be baptised. She had been thinking it over, learning about it, praying about it, for months - and when the opportunity arose, she was ready. Despite her fear of the water, and especially of being under the water, she never wavered in her resolve to publicly declare her acceptance of and faith in Jesus Christ as her Savior.

I am so proud of her. It must be one of the most fervent desires of any Christian mother's heart to know that her child knows and loves God. For the past seven and a half years, it's been my job to do things for her until she was able to do them on her own, to make the best decisions for her until she was capable of thinking them through herself. This decision, though, was never up to me - believing, accepting, and obeying were decisions that she had to make for herself.

And she did.

To have a child who understands so much at such a young age, and who is so eager to be obedient to Him...I can't express the joy that fills my heart to think of it.

Here's my sweet girl, freshly baptised...whiter than snow. <3