First Baptisms in Dao!

First Baptisms in Dao!
Originally uploaded by Derek & Sarah Grant.

Last Sunday was the first Baptisms in Dao. We all hiked down to the river, where the men built a small damn with rocks to stop the
water flow and create a deeper pool of water. This was of their own initiative. We didn't tell them it needed to be deeper. They
came to that conclusion on their own. After the "pool" was made, our co-worker spoke a brief message on baptism again (he'd already
spoken about this the previous Sunday) along with the 4 Dao men being trained to be church leaders. After this, Derek baptized
Scott and then Scott baptized 30 Dao men, women, and children. This was a huge thing for these people to get in that water and dunk
themselves. There are so many taboos in their culture about water, not to mention their fear of being cold and wet. For them, to
step in that water, and be immersed was a huge step of faith and a great testimony of their desire to obey Christ.

The photo is a boy named Tokabo. He is probably somewhere around 12 or 13 years of age. Dad Schmidt, he is the one in the painting
we sent you. He has shown a clear understanding and desire for God's Word and to follow Christ. His parents and younger sister were
also baptized. You should have seen his father grinning from ear to ear when his wife and children were baptized. He sure was proud!