Devin Rand is baptized by Wisconsin's Rice Lake District Pastor Scott Manly (right) and Frederic Church Elder Mark James (left).
Being baptized in an icy lake is not what most new Christians have in mind when joining the church. It sounds extreme. Interestingly, for Devin Rand, this seemed to reflect his initial thoughts about attending and becoming a church member.
Devin did not grow up in a Christian home, so church was foreign to him. Although he wasn’t raised believing in God, all that changed when he met his coworker, Thomas Meadows, a member of the Frederic Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Thomas remembers praying to God, asking for strength at his job or for God to guide him out of that job and into another. As soon as he said “Amen,” he received a call from a friend with a job offer. Thomas met Devin at that new job. Soon, Devin noticed Thomas refusing to work on Sabbaths, and he began asking questions. Before long, Thomas invited Devin to go to church with him.
Feeling the need for church, Devin agreed, knowing that he truly wanted to do this. However, he admitted that it did feel like a crazy, somewhat weird thing for him to do. Not having been raised in the church, everything was new to him; but he quickly began learning. During his time at the Frederic Church, he also met his future wife, Jaci.
About four years ago, around the time he met Thomas, Devin began baptismal studies with him. Later, he also studied with another Frederic elder, Mark James. But the studies were interrupted before he could finish them. It would be three years before Devin would reach out to Pastor Scott Manly to resume them.
Near the end of those three years, Devin experienced a life-changing event: a near-fatal motorcycle accident where he hit a deer, split it in half, and nearly lost his life. Although he wound up in the hospital, thankfully, he survived. He then realized that God had protected him and kept him from dying.
Devin describes, “It was a switch that flipped, a realization that I want to be with God. In the beginning, it was hard to understand God and believe in Him. It was kind of depressing realizing the end was near. I wanted to have kids and grandkids and live my full life. But I realized eternity will be amazing, and God is truly here to help us. He wants us to thrive for Him. That is what drove me to finish it. I felt like the devil was trying to hold me back from doing it. And he had me for a while, but I got away.”
Pastor Manly reconnected Devin with Elder Mark James to complete the lessons. From the beginning of his renewed decision for baptism, Devin expressed his desire to be baptized in an icy lake!
As they neared the completion of Devin’s lessons, the weather grew cold, and the surrounding lakes started freezing over. After finishing the studies, he was still determined to be baptized in the icy lake. So, on December 14, the day of the baptism, Devin went to the agreed upon lake and cut a hole in the ice using his chainsaw!
As the appointed time drew near, a number of friends, family, and church members gathered at the lake to witness this special event. Pastor Manly shared a devotional thought and a prayer from the shore before walking with Mark James and Devin Rand to the icy hole. Pastor Manly determined it would be best to keep the time in the water to a minimum.
As the party of thirty-some people ventured onto the ice, a deep, loud crack erupted from shore and shot across the lake. Everyone quickly realized they would need to spread out for this event, and thankfully, no more cracking sounds were heard.
Devin eagerly jumped into the icy water first, followed by Mark James and Pastor Manly. Pastor Manly and Mark wore waders, which helped immensely with insulation. However, the cold was still very apparent on Devin’s face as he came out of the water with a gasp. It was time to get out and go warm up!
Regarding coming out of the waters, Devin remembers, “I felt refreshed like it took weight off my shoulders. It felt like the devil didn’t have a tight grip on me and the Lord was protecting me.”
Devin’s story beautifully exemplifies God’s patience with us. Though Devin’s pursuit of baptism was delayed for a few years, God did not give up on him; instead, He kept working on Devin’s heart until he finally committed to following Jesus. As he continues to study and grow, we pray that Devin will also experience the baptism by fire that melts hearts and leads others to our soon-coming Savior.
Scott Manly is the Rice Lake district pastor. This story was first published in the Wisconsin Lamp Letter.
