Baptizing the Board

Grace and Peace!

I had a delightful homiletics class this afternoon.
It began, as always, with a word of prayer ( I love this part!), led by a different student each time.  They always pray for each other, for their country, for me (as their instructor), for my family, and for my congregation back home in Minnesota.

Today's lesson was about the use of Imagery, Illustration, and Imagination in sermons, and how the use of these can often help engage the listeners and help them apply the lesson of the day to their lives.  (Think Resurrection = Butterfly)

They were having a difficult time understanding the concept of Imagery, Imagination, and Illustration and what I meant in my explanations and descriptions given.  I was trying to help them, the best I could, to understand how to "draw a mental picture", with words (Word Picture), for the listeners, of an idea or concept or lesson they want to teach.  We finally found a phrase in Swahili that helped them understand -"lungha ya picha" - lungha meaning "language" and picha meaning "picture".  Perfect!  Language Picture - Word Picture - this was probably as close I would get, so I went with it.

So, to demonstrate, I tried to use "lungha ya picha" to explain Holy Baptism.  I tried to draw a mental picture of baptism for them, using a word picture.

So, as I've done many times in my youth bible studies over the years, I compared Holy Baptism to a chalkboard, and how Jesus is the eraser.  I even have a chalkboard, which by this time in the lecture, was pretty filled up with my chicken scratch!  So I told them that my words on the chalkboard represented my sins, and that, just like what happens in Holy Baptism, Jesus (the eraser) erases (washes away) my sins.  And then, of course I demonstrated by erasing the entire chalkboard.

I wasn't entirely sure if they understood, given the looks on their faces, but I pressed on with my lecture and we all seemed to have a good time despite the gap in communication.  Until ...

... at the end of class, when we closed in prayer and the students all packed up their bags to leave, one older student, Nazareth, came up to my desk, grabbed the eraser, and exclaimed proudly, "Teacher!  I am going to baptize the board for you!"

We both laughed out loud, shook hands and hugged, because Nazareth understood!  I replied, "Yes, Nazareth!  You may baptize the board!"

And Nazareth (like Jesus), wiped it clean!

Bwana Jesu Asifiwe!  (Praise the Lord!)
Amen!