I remember baptizing a young boy, maybe 13, in Guyana, South America a long time ago. He had a tender heart, wanted to follow Jesus and wanted to be baptized. We went down to the Esquibo (sp?) River to baptize him, where upon the first try of putting him under, I found out he was afraid of water and he stiffened up like a board. I tried again, with his permission, but he kept resisting as his head was about to go under water. After several more tries, I called for a friend of mine who was watching on the bank to come in with us. Maybe with both of us beside him, he wouldn't be afraid. We tried once, one of us on each side, and he still stiffened up. You could tell the hurt in his eyes. He wanted to be baptized, but the fear was too great. My friend said, "OK, let's try it one more time." As we started to lower him in, my friend jumped over him,straddled him like a horse and plunged him under. The young man came up with a bewildered look on his face, but it transformed into a huge smile and hugs and happiness. I will never forget the look on his face or the commando way in which he was baptized.

There was a 400 lb. woman that I baptized in the Ukraine a while back. She lived in a high-rise apartment. like on the 15th floor and had not left her apartment in years. She didn't have the strength. She wanted to be baptized so desperately she walked down 15 flights of stairs (the elevator was broke, we broke it on the ride up because we overloaded it). We had to call a moving van to get her to the lake because she was too big to fit through the doors on the bus. She walked out to the lake and I tried to baptize her, but she wouldn't go under. She was too buoyant. It took four of us hurling our bodies on top of her to put her under. She was thrilled, as were we. We took her back home and she made it all the way back to her home on the 15th floor on foot. That was determination.

Those are great memories, and really challenged my view of baptism ( like what if all of them does not get wet? or what if that woman couldn't leave her apartment and make it to the water? Praise God for His grace in all of it.)

I would have to say that every baptism I have assisted in has been special, but the baptism of my own children and recently my grand daughter have to rank up at the top. On the lighter side, here is a link to my blog with a YouTube baptism that was featured on "America's Funniest Home Videos"

I don't know whether you saw one of the baptisms which took place at the youth rally in Monroe, but as you know we were using a "dunkin' booth" which had been sort of dressed up to be a portable baptistry. Only thing was, the water was absolutely icy, with no practical way of warming it.
That didn't seem to matter to one young man, from a non-Christian home, as he obeyed his really strong conviction that the time was right now to become a Christian. He was so fired up he didn't seem to mind the cold. However, our youth minister discovered that our waders had dry-rotted (I assure you not from lack of use but rather from age!).
Rental of dunkin' booth: $100
Replacement waders: $50
Look on youth minister's face as he sank into the frigid water: PRICELESS

I remember my first baptism. It was a young girl in my youth group. (now my stepdaughter) I was so nervous that instead of saying the traditional "I now baptize you in the name of the Father....etc", I ended up saying, "By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you..." Thank goodness I stopped myself before I finished the phrase! Would i have legally married my future step daughter? Glad I didn't find out. We all had a good laugh! I will never forget that!

Keith said: Also, have you witnessed any humorous incidents with baptisms?

I only "witnessed" this via the internet, but still...

As a father of four children whom I have had the joyous privilege of baptizing, these memories are certainly the most precious. Each was special for different reasons. Each one remains special, as my children continue to live by the Spirit and walk with the Lord.

There have also been some humorous baptismal events. One in particular comes to mind. I’m not a big guy…about 5’8”. At the time this occurred I weighed about 170 pounds. (Those were the days.) It was the dead of winter. We were in the suburbs of Wichita, Kansas. It was cold, Kansas cold. It had been bitter cold for more than a week. It was late on the coldest night of all. The wind was howling. Parts of Nebraska were blowing past the windows which overlooked a field on the east side of the building.

The baptistery was constructed behind the pulpit on the north part of the building. The baptistery heater may have worked at some point in the past. But, it was definitely out-of-service at this time. The dressing rooms doubled as vestibules for the emergency exits. To say these rooms were drafty would be a gross understatement. Now, if a person needed to sit down to make ready for the baptism or to get dressed afterward, metal folding chairs were readily available.

Well, the young man I was baptizing was nearly as big as one of the barns on the farm where he was raised. He was nearly a foot taller than me. He weighed about 250 pounds. He was solid, too. Pure muscle! Well, I started my years of ministry in southern Colorado. So, I was no stranger to cold-water-rescues of penitent sinners. I began to explain to this young man what we were about to experience. He interrupted with an assurance that there would be no problem whatsoever. He went on to courteously explain that he was ready to be baptized and didn’t want to wait for even one more syllable of caution from me. I complied.

As we entered the water our lips turned blue. We shrieked uncontrollably as we gasped for air. I attempted to say something about not wanting him to be shocked when he went under the water, but it was inaudible. I also attempted to state something meaningful just before I baptized him. This, too, was garbled. The last thing I remember before baptizing him was the look of pleading on his face. It was like he was asking me to please…please…please hurry.

When I buried him in the watery grave he instantly became so rigid I became alarmed. It really frightened me. Where I’m from in Oklahoma some we’d say that it skeert me half ta death! I reached behind him and attempted to lift him up. I was able to get a good hold on the garment near the middle of his back. It was good enough for me to hold on tightly while he pulled me under. Just about the time my nose was going under, he came alive. His arms were flailing. He was grasping for something solid to hold on to and pull himself up. We were both instantly engaged in a demonstration of how to climb a ladder when there is no ladder. A couple of seconds later we were both standing in the baptistery looking at each other and laughing our heads off. People were gathered on the landings above the steps on both sides of the baptistery. They were roaring in laughter. I’ve always thought the he certainly received the Spirit when he was baptized. The room was so full of joy, there was no doubting it!

Well, that’s one of my memories.

God bless you and yours,
-bill

At my old church, College Hills Church of Christ, they have a special class for mentally handicapped people called VIP's. One Sunday morning one of the VIP's came down to get baptized and when she got in the water she screamed "D*** this water is cold!" The whole congregation laughed so hard.