Every Easter season I am reminded of the wonderful gift of grace, forgiveness, and life I was given by my Saviour. However, often times I take this gift for granted, or even worse, I disregard it completely.
Do I deliberately push this gift aside? No, I don't. However, when we don't accept God's wonderful gift of the cross, we are doing Him and ourselves a major dis-service.
Think of it this way...let's say you see a young child in the middle of the street. A big car is coming toward the child. Out of impulse, you run to save the child. You manage to get the child out of the way, however you take the brunt of the hit. You live to tell about it, but you are permanently disabled.
You did this act out of love. You gave yourself up for this child you've never seen. The problem is, the child or the parents never thanked you for what you did. This child lives because of you, yet no one acknowledges your brave act. What you did was in vain, a beautiful act of love gone to waste.
Think of how you would feel if this happened. You would probably be hurt and angry. This event I described is on a much lower scale than God giving up His only son for us. He did it to save us from eternal Hell, to give us the freedom of being forgiven for our past mistakes, and to give us abundant life on earth. However, in many cases, this is another major act of love gone to waste. How do you think God feels when we don't acknowlege and appreciate this gift of love. How do you think He feels when His forgiveness is readily available, yet we toss it aside only to keep beating ourselves up over it. How do you think He feels when we neglect the power He freely gives, only to live in fear instead.
I think you get the point. I have chosen to accept God's wonderful act of love on the cross. I am far from perfect and will continue to make mistakes, but I will not live in bondage. Instead, I will live in the freedom of His forgiveness. Instead of living in fear and doubt, I will live with the assurance of His presence and power. I ask and challenge you to do the same. Please don't let this wonderful gift go to waste. Weather you believe it or not, you are worthy of accepting this gift and benefitting from it.
Remember, a life was given for you. If you accept this gift and live in gratitude for it, your life will never be the same. It will be the wonderful gift it was meant to be. Enjoy the blessings : )
