My son had told us since he was little fellow that he wanted to be baptized in the Big South Fork River on his birthday. He as saved when he was 6 yrs old. I was with him and I heard his little sincere prayer. He waited till he was a few years older to be baptized. He talked to the preacher of our church and told him all about being saved when he was 6 yrs old and what it meant to be saved. Our preacher absolutely agreed with everything my son told him. My son also told where and when he wanted to be baptized. So, on July 6, 2011 on his 10th birthday he was baptized in the Big South Fork River by his Papaw who is a preacher and by his Granddad, my father, who is a deacon. What a wonderful day that was!

Years ago I was baptized in what I would call a creek. It was close to the church and plenty deep enough to be baptized in. Now as I have grown older my hearing fades and my sight grows dim but I have not lost sight of my final home.

I was baptized in a lake at a church campground! Then, as I grew older, I was baptized in an Apostolic Pentecostal church and what a celebration!!! I’m living for the Lord & couldn’t be happier!! ❤️✝️😊

Amen Praise the Lord for we who are wasted in the blood know we will be in heaven.

I was baptized in 2015 in a lake in my hometown in Massachusetts, just the same way as you depict in this video. We all held hands and walked single file into the water. Our pastor dunked us in backwards one by one. The whole church congregation was on the shoreline watching and celebrating with us. We all brought food and desserts and barbecued. We stood in a circle before walking into the water and each of us took turns reciting our favorite Bible verse. All were invited to come celebrate with us whether they even went to church or not. What a glorious day it was. Such a beautiful memory.

Nice video my friend. So glad to see someone else sharing our great history of our mountains. Keep up the good work and God Bless you friend.

JD love your videos. My mom was one of those baptized in the creek in December and she nor any baptized with her suffered any ill effects from it. I remember watching my 2 older sisters being baptized in a TN creek on Easter morning when I was about 5 or 6. What a glorious morning that was. I’m 73 now and I still rejoice in it. By the time I got my own dunk it was in a very nice inside baptismal.

I’ve attended many baptisms down at the River. Thank you for sharing

Got baptized in the late '80s in ivydale West Virginia . And it looked just like this people were lined along the River Bank singing as we got lowered into the elk River it was raining all day and the preacher wanted to back out grandmother Pearl Walker talk him in to not canceling it well you know that rain stopped and the sun came out when it was finished as we were driving back up on the hill then it started to rain again by. It was such a wonderful feeling.

Still do this where I live! ❤️🙌🏼🥰🙏🏼✝️

The most beautiful baptisms I ever saw was a handful of folks baptized in a natural pool in a creek. It was in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains with a rocky cliff behind and trees surrounding it in early summer in the mid sixties.

Such a truly amazeing thing to go down a sinner and rise a born again,i pray many more in this day come back to our Holy Lord Jesus,love oneanother,peace and joy is what you recive from earth,eternal life is what we get with Jesus,Glory be to God,thank you so much for this story its beautiful.😊❤🙏

My father was a minister in southwest Virginia. He baptized folks in the Holstein and Roanoke rivers during the early years of his ministry. One of my earliest memories is of a baptism in the Roanoke river with the cattle watching from the opposite bank. Precious memories!

Seen many folks Baptized in a pond and this sure brings back many great memories

Spot On with the purpose of Baptism after conversion & as a Public testimony of the new walk in Christ...

This makes my heart so happy!

I enjoy all your work but this has to be my favorite to date!! Thank you for sharing this special part of Appalachian faith and doing so in such a respectful and honorable way. Sincerely, Shawnte

When you love our Lord you can't wait to be baptized, I wish I had in the Jordan yes ago, but ended up in a swimming pool but it was still the best day of my life, aside from my wedding day.

Brings back so many wonderful memories. One day we'll see the loved ones who have already went on before us! Thank you so much JD for sharing this video and to all those who shared their pictures of these baptisms! 🥰 ❤️

Such beautiful memories, thanks for sharing this. Such a blessing

This is the way I was baptized in Morgan County back in the day ❤

Really awesome vintage photos and the music was beautiful.

I was baptized in Bitter Creek between Harriman and Mossy Grove.I’ll tell you the water in bitter creek was sweet that day.

Absolutely Beautiful. ❤

Just found your channel. Can’t stop watching, the music and photos of a time long gone. The narration is so laid back and southern. Great video!

Thank you soo much. I am entering into the sacred Sabbath hours...with this beautiful baptism video. Thank you sooo much! God bless you.

THEM WAS THE GOOD DAYS 🙏🏼

I was baptized in Flathead lake in Montana in 2000. So, I’m surprised to hear this called “old fashioned”, since it wasn’t that long ago.There was a wide diversity in wealth and education among the parishioners of the church I attended. I was surprised at the number of sophisticated, well educated people who, I found out, had chosen the beautiful lake over that indoor thing. (Though, I’d guess they were baptized in the summer.)

brings back such memories

Fisherman Baptist Church down in South Alabama still uses the river to baptized with!

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I watch all your videos and I loved this one . Well on the other hand all videos are 👍

I remember my grandparents talking of so many of things you share although none of them were from Appalachia. I guess some of the traditions moved to other parts as people moved west.

I’ve baptized in ponds and a creek and a cold spring 🥶 brrr. I pastored a rural Baptist church that didn’t have an indoor baptistry. It was my first church located in rural Choctaw County, Alabama, when I was in college and another one years later in Jefferson County, Georgia.

Wonderful

Great Content 👍

Thank you

I have photos of my grandfather baptizing people in the river (or lake, or pond..)

Yesss Sierra! Bathpism is a great thing to do !!! I'm hoping to do it in the Jordan River!!! Is just a wishful thinking!!🤔

Amen

This is how I was baptized. My daddy was a pentecostal preacher. I always wondered what the point was to get baptized in private inside.

Great video.

Was raised on that song book!

I saw them break the ice for one woman in Boone County in 1990.

❤

The rivers,streams and creeks became to polluted to baptize in.Thank you Lord for all our many blessings.The 😈hates us but he'll get over it.

Baptism should be a public profession of faith and not secreted away somewhere. A blessing to see those baptized in the old time way in a river or a lake like the Good Lord intended. I might add that you said it was an outward profession of what had inwardly happened. Yes, so they did not enter the water a sinner and come up from the water born again. There's no power in the water, so you misspoke there. That comment makes it sound like there's salvation in the baptism. Salvation is through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Baptism simply announces to the world, I've already died to my sin and have been raised to newness of life in Christ and Baptism in water is an outward picture of what has inwardly happened. If you went into the water saved, like you are supposed to, you arose from the water saved. If you went in lost, you arise from that water as a wet, lost sinner! Come to Jesus folks! "What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!"

I was baptized as a baby. Then moved to Tn. got involved in the church and baptized again but inside. I so want to be baptized in the river but they don't do it anymore.

They were to be saved ( born again ) before they ever got in the water. I was baptized in the creek.

I feel like there should still be doing this. Where are all the no good preachers at? They can announce to meet anywhere locally but they don’t. There isn’t much soul saving going on now days.

Baptism remits sin

While I respect this as an old time tradition, it creeps me out a little now. I’m glad I can be who I want and not have to follow along today.

There is falsehood in this story. He said, nobody got their sins washed away, however Acts 22:16 says otherwise: “And now why do you wait, arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.”

As someone from a fairly secular country 🇬🇧 specifically 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 I find the level of religiosity in parts of America rather weird and backward. I've been following US politics for about 6 years AND I've read The Constitution. I also follow religion generally from the non religious side.

This is amazing beautiful love this video 😊