Baptism is a symbol of the new life believers have in Christ. This is Alex Kinard’s public profession of faith in Jesus from her baptism on Sunday, June 22, 2025.
My name is Alex, but most of you know me as Chris. Today, I wish to profess my faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In my life, I’ve been raised in a Christian home, with most of my family knowing Jesus, but just because I’ve been exposed to Christ doesn’t mean my walk with him is simple or straightforward. Ever since childhood, I’ve known the Bible’s stories and mostly gone to church. However, there was one issue: I didn’t know God. Despite my family’s efforts, my relationship with Christ had never clicked. Then we had a 3-year period where we couldn’t find a church, so we didn’t go to
church, and with that, everything in my walk with Christ was somewhat paused. But that changed 3 years ago when we walked into Redeemer Church. At first, I was cautious not to get too attached to the church because I thought we wouldn’t be back the next time, but then I made a friend, and an opportunity presented itself: camp. So in June of 2022, I hopped on a bus and went to Arkansas with the people in RSM, and it was there where I found a community and the spark of Christ again. Grant Rose, a pastor here who moved to Shreveport, showed me a taste of the Lord again. I’m very thankful for him because if he weren’t there, I likely wouldn’t be standing here today. That’s when I realized I needed Christ. I couldn’t keep him waiting any longer. However, this isn’t the end of what I have to say. When we came back, about 2 months later, I wasn’t seeing what I thought I should’ve, so I grew further from God again. But in Glorieta this past year, I realized I needed to leave my dormant stage in my relationship with God. God’s plans for me were waiting, and I wasn’t walking the walk as I ought to. So we got back, and I wanted to know even more about the Lord, so I started truly listening to what had to be said on Sunday mornings, and I saw that the Lord truly offered me something nothing else could compare to, his steadfast love for a sinner like me. After that, I started looking at how the people in the church were living and comparing it to people in my school and everyday life and saw that a world without God is broken and desolate. In the church, I saw life. In the world, I saw darkness and depression everywhere. One of my favorite verses in the Bible, Psalm 23:1, says, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. And even though I walk through the shadow of the valley of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” This is one of my favorites because it shows me how faithful he is to his followers. Even though I may sin, he loves me the same. And as a good shepherd, he chose to protect the flock from hell when he got up on that cross at Calvary and died for our sins. He gave his life so we might live, so that we might come back to him, so I’m ready to pick up my cross and follow him through the depths of judgment and persecution so that I may come back to the Father.