mural at John the Baptist Church at the Jordan River, By David Bjorgen (Own work)
[CC BY-SA 2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons
O Christ, you humbled yourself and received baptism
at the hands of your friend and cousin, John,
showing us the way of humility;
help us to follow you, and never to be encumbered with pride.
O Christ, by your baptism, you took our humanity into cleansing waters;
give us new birth, and lead us into life as sons and daughters of God.
O Christ, by your baptism the material world became charged with you holiness;
make us instruments of your transformation in this our world.
O Christ, by your baptism you revealed the Trinity,
your Father calling you his beloved Son.
and the Spirit descending upon you like a dove;
renew our worship, rededicate us in the spirit of our baptism,
and mould us into our true nature, in the image of God.
For your love’s sake.
after the Chaldean Rite
___________________
Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”
Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.”
Then John consented.
As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
prayer & verse 
Eric. Explain this to me. Who is being portrayed in the water with Christ?
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Ron, I’ve seen several Orthodox Icons with similar depictions. From my reading I understand that, while in Western art
“Jesus is shown as submitting to John’s authority, in Orthodox icons Christ’s hands are not shown in prayer, but in a sign of blessing. Rather than the waters of Jordan cleansing Christ, it is Christ Who cleans the waters. This is why in the bottom of most Theophany Icons, little creatures appear to be fleeing from the feet of Christ. This is a reflection of the words of the Psalmist regarding the Messiah (Christ): “the sea saw and fled, the Jordan turned back” (Psalm 114:3).”
https://iconreader.wordpress.com/2011/01/06/baptism-of-christ-the-theophany-icon/
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