Gifts

It’s been a good day here. I like days like this. I am keenly aware that I am a human and that God is so good to me, I am painfully aware that without His grace I would be somewhere that I don’t want to think about, and I am enjoying watching my family relax and let down their guard a little bit.

When you have a family like ours you always seem to be on red alert… Today would have been one of those days. I had a restless night last night dreaming about something to do with getting my cell phone fixed, the boys started the day of with a kicking/yelling match about who was is whose space, and Laeliana was filled to the brim and overflowing with whines today, Normally this kind of day doesn’t go well. But God is good….

We made a last minute decision to all join Eric on his trip to the dentist this morning because the idea of three grumpy kids confined in their car seats was more appealing than letting them run amuck in the house. So we loaded up the car with breakfast in hand and headed out with the boys still bickering all the while.

Nothing eventful on the trip… Laeliana dropped off to sleep after a few resounding choruses of “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus” (still not sure which song she is singing, but at least it’s a good topic…) and the boys whined and argued for a while. (Eric and I sitting so far a way from them is a blessing now and then...) We got to Eric’s appointment and he headed in while I laid my head down for a quick nap in the car thinking the kids are all buckled safe and sound and I’m tired!

A few minutes later there was a knock on the window… my poor numb husband had wandered out to the car to see if we wanted pizza. The dentist (who is fixing his teeth for free) wants to buy us lunch… So we unbuckle the kids and haul them all into the office for pizza from a nearby deli. 

God uses people that you would never expect to teach you lessons you really struggle at learning. For me, accepting gifts of any kind is hard. And God has used this particular dentist to teach me this lesson over and over again. He has done massive amount of work on my teeth, with more to come… he is fixing Eric’s teeth, he bought a water pump for our car… He has even come into the office at 10pm to pull a tooth that was giving me grief.  Occasionally he asks for help with something, but for the most part, it is a gift. And not being able to repay him is a burden to me. I think God likes it that way.

We have been blessed with so many friends and family members who have been such a blessing to us and there is no way we can ever repay them. We just have to accept their free gifts to us with a heart full of gratitude.

God is like that. He has given me so much and I can never repay Him. My thanks will never be sufficient and nothing I can ever do would even come close to expressing the gratitude I feel.

It’s been three years since I accepted the free gift of salvation. I met Jesus that morning and saw His outstretched hand holding that gift that had cost Him everything. I reached out to Him and accepted what he offered me. No payment necessary, no strings attached. Just a gift from Him to me. And that gift, so precious that it cost Him His life, is offered to each of us freely. It isn’t something we earn. It isn’t something we can repay. It isn’t something we can even describe… eternal life in heaven is an understatement… an abundant life doesn’t even come close… peace, rest joy… doesn’t even touch the surface of that gift that He offers us. The unspeakable gift… that’s what the Bible calls it, and it’s so true. There will never be words to tell what Jesus gave me that day that I accepted the gift of salvation.

He is offering you that same gift. Won’t you accept it?

It’s hard… I admit it. To take something so precious and claim it as your own isn’t easy, but it’s worth it. To humble yourself and just accept that precious gift can be painful. But God will take that pain and replace it with joy unspeakable. To want something so beautiful and know that you will never be able to pay for it will make you aware of how truly unworthy you are, but it’s still offered to you… free for all who call upon the name of  the Lord.

Are you saved? Has there been a time in your life that you came face to face with what Jesus Christ did for you? Have you accepted that gift that He is holding out to you? He died for you. He laid down His perfect sinless life to pay the cost of that priceless gift, so that He could give it to you. Have you claimed it as yours?

If not, then why? What are you waiting for? Jesus is still waiting for you. He is waiting to give you the free gift of an eternal, abundant life filled with peace, joy and rest. He paid for it with everything He had just so that He could give it to you. Please don’t turn Him down. Bow your head in prayer, accept the gift that He offers. It’s simple… and it really will change your life.

Romans 10:9-10 

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart

that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Getting saved is as simple as A…B…C…

Accept that you are a sinner and that your sins have condemned you to an eternity in Hell.

Romans 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Romans 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Believe that God loves you so much that He made a way for you to go to Heaven through the death, burial and resurrection of His perfect son, Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:8  But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

John 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Confess that you know you are going to Hell, but that you believe Jesus Christ died on the cross, went to hell in your place and rose from the dead. Ask Him to save you and give you the gift of eternal life. Put your trust in Him… He’ll never let you down.

Romans 10:9-10  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Romans 10:13  For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

There isn’t any way for you to work your way to heaven. Your good deeds won’t get you there, and even though you are trying your very best, you will fall short. There is no other way but through the blood of Jesus. Trust Him.

Ephesians 2:8 -9  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.