Scripture
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.
~Romans 6:23, NLT
Quote
A person who has given himself entirely to Jesus Christ will never think that he has done too much for Him.
~Henry Scougal
I read a devotion yesterday that convicted me. The question was presented: what if you gave someone a gift, a beautifully wrapped gift, and they just ignored it or set it aside? You would be tempted to ask them why they did not unwrap their gift. You may have spent hours looking for just the perfect gift, but when you give it, they set it aside and don’t even open it. I doubt that anyone could be more guilty of doing just this than yours truely. I am sitting there watching the kids unwrap their stuff, and when they bring me a gift, I set it beside the chair until I have a stack of unopened gifts. Can you imagine shopping for just the right gift and then when you present it, the person says no thanks, or perhaps they take it, and then set it aside without seeing what’s in the gift box. It would hurt wouldn’t it? There would be a little sting. For those of us who are proud, it takes humility to receive and obviously I am lacking in humility.
One of my many regrets is refusing a gift. The man had a wife and three small children. I don’t remember where he worked but they lived in a modest house and I assumed they had a hard time making ends met. The LORD had used me and one of the laymen to get them in church. One Sunday night after the service while we stood in the parking lot talking, he walked up and gave me a $20 bill, and I gave it back. I told him, “Man, you have a wife and three children, I can’t take your money.” I will never forget the look on his face as he took the spurned gift and walked away. It just so happened that the man who had visited this family with me overheard the conversation. He walked us and said, “You had no right to do that. He had probably been thinking about that all week and he wanted to give you something to show his appreciation and you robbed him of that priviledge. You robbed him of a blessing.” I saw this man’s son a few years ago; if I ever see him again, I am going to apologize.
Why do we refuse gifts? I don’t think there is much doubt, pride is the biggest factor. What do you do when you give someone something and they don’t use it. They just set it aside or even leave it outside. After awhile, you are tempted to go back and get your gift because it was never appreciated and never used. What about the gift of salvation? God offers the gift; His hand of mercy is outstretched as He offers the gift of salvation. What will happen to those who spurn the gift? Why would we reject the gift in the first place? All I know is that million reject His wonderful grace gift every day. Pride is a factor but so is fear. I think people are afraid to trust Christ. They are afraid He will bring about change and they don’t want change. I do want change. I need to change. I welcome change. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strengthof my heart and my portion for ever. [Psalm 73:26, NRSV]
Extra
The reports continue to be good on Ken Nelson and I think Margaret is doing well also. I hope you have a great Friday. I know the grand kids love Friday and they are counting days. It is unbelievable, this school year is practically gone. Time flies.
I woke up this morning thinking about our children’s ages and for a moment, I had Holly at 34 and then a little bell went off and I heard the number 44. Holly signed up to work at Yellowstone National Park the summer after she graduated high school and that was more than 25 years ago…unbelievable! Time flies!
Have a great day and thanks for reading the blog.