THE NEWEST CHURCH WITHIN WUBC, UCHURCH, HAD ITS FIRST BAPTISM!

Recently we wrote about the new young church that joined the WUBC a few months ago during the 62nd Congress. UChurch was formed just one year ago from a small team of enthusiasts, and today it already has 58 official members and around 90 regular attendees! On Sunday, July 13th, the church celebrated a milestone — its first baptism. We could not pass by such an important event, so we attended and are ready to share how it went.

Is one year a lot or a little? For eternity, it is nothing — but for a new church, it is an eternity. We will certainly share the interesting story of how this church came to be in a future post, but today we will talk about the baptism. This Sunday, three people made their covenant with God — one sister and two brothers. Notably, all three had come to know Christ as their Savior in this very church. So it was only natural that they chose to be baptized here as well. Different ages, different circumstances, different life stories — but one and the same promise to serve the Lord all their lives.

UChurch rents space from an American church in the city of Puyallup, a suburb of Seattle. The celebratory service, as always, began with songs of praise. That day the church had many guests — relatives and friends from other churches who came to congratulate their loved ones on their baptism. After a word of instruction, the ceremony itself began. Interestingly, for guests visiting this church for the first time — and even for many regular attendees — it remained a mystery until the very last moment: how would the baptisms take place when there was no water anywhere in sight? Indeed, the service had proceeded as usual, with microphones, flowers, and worship instruments arranged on the stage. So where was the water? At the right moment, two ministers walked onto the stage and removed a large screen that had been hanging on the wall. Behind the screen, to everyone's surprise, was a large window — and behind that window, a baptistery. Pastor Pavlo Marchenko was already standing in the water, ready to begin.

"Do you believe that Christ is your personal Savior?" — it was asked three times.

"I believe!" — came the answer, three times.

"On the basis of your faith, I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!"

Three souls joined the church. Three hearts made a promise to God to serve Him with a clear conscience. Three people may not seem like many — but for a young, small church, this is a great joy and a blessing.

What followed was the first communion, embraces from friends, and many flowers.

We, together with all the churches of the Convention, join in congratulating UChurch.

We rejoice with you that the Kingdom of God is expanding. We wish your community many more baptisms and joyful moments ahead.

And of course, we invite everyone to visit UChurch — where guests are always welcome.