Celebrating Seeds of Spiritual Growth
One of the many blessings of serving as a chaplain at Bethesda is the shared belief that all people are created in God’s image, unconditionally loved by God, and able to know God personally.
Fueled by this belief, a small group of writers developed a Christian spiritual formation curriculum for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In 2024, we have seen God use this curriculum in beautiful ways among God’s people. As the seeds of Scripture have taken root and blossomed, 13 people made a personal public declaration of faith in Jesus, with a desire to follow Jesus in baptism.
What a blessing for me to guide each of these individuals through baptism classes, where we discussed: Who is Jesus? What is believer’s baptism? Why do I need to go under the water? What does it mean to follow Jesus? We wrote and recorded personal testimonies of why the participants wanted to be baptized and what baptism meant to them. Their testimonies were shared with family and friends at their baptisms in the chilly waters of Black Lake at Camp Crossroads in Graven Hurst, the warm waters of the baptismal pool at the Wainfleet Be In Christ Church, and the wavy waters of Lake Ontario.
Editor’s Note: We are happy to share two of the Bethesda baptismal candidate’s testimonies, with their permission. Their biographies were written by Mike Gilmore.
Patty Andres lives in the Family Support Program and attends Day Activity Programs at Bethesda. Patty loves to hang out with her friends in her home, at Tim Hortons Restaurant, and at the movies. She enjoys doing arts and crafts, attending concerts, and reading her Bible. God is at work in her life, bringing great change and renewed joy. She was baptized at the Wainfleet Be in Christ Church in Wainfleet, Ontario.
Chris Esau has been supported by Bethesda for many years in the residential support program. Chris has a strong circle of support comprised of his Christian home and church family. His family and friends were so excited to see Chris take this step of faith. Many family, friends, and staff came to support and celebrate with Chris. Following the baptismal service at Charles Daily Park by Lake Ontario in the town of Lincoln, they shared a light lunch and cake. Chris loves to watch sports and has many jerseys and hats of his favorite teams and players. He loves to sing and knows the words to many of the old rock-and-roll songs.
Chaplain Mike Gilmore has worked at Bethesda for over 25 years. With a degree in Religious Education from Tyndale Bible College, Mike has seen a lot of change over his years a chaplain, but God’s love for all people, including people with intellectual disabilities, never changes. Mike and his wife Krista have three daughters, one son-in-law, and two grandchildren.
