by Deborah McConomy–Wallace

Long before priest–explorer Father Louis Hennepin saw Niagara Falls for the first time in December of 1678, the native people who lived nearby considered the thundering waters of the mighty waterfall an awesome thing. The Niagara River cuts through bedrock, pushes boulders aside, and roars over the edge with terrifying force, throwing up clouds of mist and rainbows. It is clear why the indigenous people believed that a powerful god must live there.

Over the centuries, explorers, daredevils, and sightseers have been drawn to the falls. When my family visited Niagara Falls earlier this year, we spent many happy hours looking at the falls from above, beside, and behind. Then we joined people from all over the world on a trip to the base of the falls on the Maid of the Mist, a boat that takes tourists on this voyage several times a day.

Wrapped in blue plastic ponchos, we took our places at the boat’s rail. We steamed past the American Falls and the smaller Bridal Veil Falls, then headed toward the Horseshoe Falls. As the boat drew near the enormous Niagara Falls, the roar of the water drowned out our excited chatter. Water from the mist streamed down our faces as we stared at the cascading waterfall.

For several minutes, the boat stayed in the turbulent water at the base of the falls. Nearly surrounded by the thundering cataracts, the sturdy boat seemed as small and vulnerable as a slender kayak. If we drifted too close, we would be crushed by the force of the falling torrents.

That didn't happen, of course. Slowly, the boat turned, and we headed back to the dock. As we chugged slowly back past the smaller falls, I noticed that people who had been reserved and quiet at the beginning of our trip were chatting with the strangers next to them. People took proffered cameras and happily photographed smiling new acquaintances. I spoke halting Japanese to some fellow tourists, and received delighted bows, smiles, and greetings in return.

Brought together by our shared adventure at the base of the falls, we were no longer strangers, separate human beings. Now we were a community of people from different nations and ethnic groups, united by water.

Just as water has the power to shape the earth under and around it, so the waters of baptism have the power to shape the life of the believer and, in turn, the world around the believer. God lives in our baptismal waters; and God gives us life through it.

In the baptismal waters, God both singles us out and draws us together. God claims the baptized one as God's own unique, much loved and much forgiven child. Our sinful self is washed clean.

With all the baptized, we are brought together in a community of believers, united by our common baptism and faith. We become inheritors of God's Kingdom and caretakers of the world around us.

God's grace cascades like a waterfall into our life when we are baptized, and it continues to flow like a mighty river throughout our earthly existence, showering us with blessings all along the way. At the most turbulent of times, we might even feel overwhelmed as we tumble in the waters of God’s abundant grace, knowing that we are certainly not in control but can only be in awe of the power all around us and holding us up.

Because God is a mighty, gracious and loving God, many blessings have been sent flowing into our lives over the years. We may not often take time to reflect on these gifts, especially at this busy time of the year when the demands of Christmas preparations, home, school, work, family, and pets seem to eat up every second.

I am convinced, however, that one of the blessings God has bestowed on women is the ability to do more than one task at a time. It is a necessary survival skill, one that helps us handle the many demands placed on us by others and by ourselves.

I encourage you, therefore, to multi-task this Advent season. Think about how you are blessed. When you’re stuck in rush hour traffic, instead of snarling at the slow-moving cars and trucks around you, consider what a blessing it is that you can drive, own a car, have the money to maintain it, and live in a place with paved roads.

Are the kids home from school and creating a cacophony when you need quiet to work? Take a deep breath and remember what a blessing children are. Make the most of snow days by taking them sledding, building a snowman, or baking cookies together.

Retired and feeling idle and unproductive? Remember that you have been blessed with time and talent, and you can share those to be a blessing to others. Volunteer at church or at your local school, museum, hospital, or library. Revel in the time to be free and enjoy God’s world.

Sometimes we may feel that our life is a frozen river, without motion or meaning, purpose or value, blessings or happiness. Yet, even in the coldest winter, Niagara Falls never freezes solid. A stream of living water moves underneath the ice.

You are a baptized child of God; and you are blessed. God has not abandoned you and never will. Be patient. Like twigs on the surface of a river, your troubles will wash away. And you, too, will join the chorus, singing:

Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
Praise him all creatures here below;
Praise him above, ye heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost! (LBW, Hymn 564)