Take Me to the River

By Rev. June Ferguson

THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO EVERYONE IN THE UNIVERSE, FOR WE ARE ALL CHILDREN OF GOD!

Take Me to the River is a non-judgmental book which will lift your spirits and enlighten your soul, leaving you with a sense of freedom so that you will soar like an eagle in life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Dec 27, 2023
• ISBN: 9798890416063

Rev. June Ferguson

The author, June Ferguson, is an ordained non-denominational minister whose primary focus is on the youth.

Book preview

FOREWORD

The title of this book results from a childhood memory, when the local pastors, on certain Sundays after their church service, would invite their entire congregation to meet at a nearby river, to perform immersion baptisms.

Once there, the pastor would wade out a short distance into the water, until he was standing waist deep in the water, then, turning to face those standing on the bank of the river, he would invite those desiring to be baptized to stand in a line. One by one, each took their turn walking down into the river, to stand in front of the pastor.

The pastor would then place his hand on top of their head, say a short prayer over them, and then he would lean them backwards and dunk them under the water for a brief moment. Afterwards, he would pull them back up, thereby baptizing them.

*immersion: fully submerging a person’s body in water (e.g, in a river)

-----------------------------------------------------------

My thoughts for today…

Take me to the river-

wash me clean!

Giving me new hopes-

and new dreams!

Give it all to God, trusting that He can handle it,

For God’s hands are a lot bigger than yours or mine!

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to everyone in the universe,

For we are all children of God!

This book, Take Me to the River, answers the question of why we baptize. The act of baptism is a symbolic gesture that validates our responsibility to believe in God’s love and His absolute power. The act of baptism is our recognition of our decision to seek the will of God, manifesting agreement with reverence.

*validates: demonstrate or support the truth or value of

*manifesting: display or show (a quality or feeling) by one’s acts or appearance; demonstrate

*reverence: deep respect for someone or something

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.’"

Matthew 18:2-3 (NKJV)

*converted: to bring over from one belief, view, or party to another

---------------------------------------------------------------------

My thoughts for today…

Jesus died as a ramson to save many; when He spoke about being converted, He was telling us that we will need to believe like a small child and accept Jesus Christ into our hearts, believing that He is the Son of God, in order to receive the gift of eternal life. This gift has already been paid for in full, and it’s the gift that keeps on giving!

PROLOGUE

If you are waiting until you get it right--

And are leading the perfect life or lifestyle--

Before accepting Jesus into your heart and your life--

You never will.

For who is perfect?

And who is without sin?

No one!

And let me assure you that you will NEVER be perfect!

For even after we accept Jesus into our hearts--

And even after we are baptized--

We will still sin.

For we are human.

But the Bible tells us there is sin not leading to death--

And there is sin leading to death.

And the sin leading to death is to NOT accept Jesus Christ.

For Jesus is the Way.

Jesus is the ONLY way--

To gain entry into heaven and to have eternal life.

Amen.

FAST MOVING TRAIN

There is a fast-moving train traveling throughout the Universe,

tooting its horn and picking up speed.

The train’s conductor is calling out your name,

and inviting you to come aboard.

The Conductor’s name is Jesus Christ

and the boarding tickets He hands out read Heaven-bound,

and they are free!

So, hop aboard, all;

because you don’t want to miss this train

as its final destination is Paradise!

The children’s story of Pinocchio is a good scenario of God and His creation. For God is our Creator and He designed each one of us as an original. Furthermore, He made us in His own image and lovingly made us His children. In fact, God loves us so much that He did not want us to be just puppets, so He gave to each of us—our own free will!

The disciples and apostles in the Holy Bible were in reality

following their own spiritual journey.

When things did not fit into their new way of thinking,

They would discard the old and put on the new—

passionately sharing this in their writings.

While staying in their own lane,

They ran their race until they reached the finish line.

Where most of them gave their lives

rather than relinquish their newfound beliefs.

Preface

This book is written using the Holy Bible as its primary reference, the teaching of Jesus, God, and love. As my spiritual journey continued, I became deeply aware of the importance of including love with anything dealing with God because we are taught that GOD IS LOVE.

That being said, my emphasis is on the Bible because I believe these writings are actually from God to all of us and the writers were men that God chose, inspired, and equipped to share God’s love with us.

I firmly believe