The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"Privilege and Responsibility"
Part 2 - "I Get To!"
"It is as much a gift of grace to be able to do anything for Him as it is that He has done so much for us."
While walking on a country lane, a man heard singing ahead. When drawing near to the place where the music seemed to originate, he saw no one. The singing continued, however, and the man realized it proceeded from below his feet. He moved closer to the edge of the lane and discovered a fellow at the bottom of a hole, digging away. Intrigued, he spoke to the man.
"Hey down there! What are you doing and why are you singing?" The man digging the hole stopped, looked up, and with a smile, responded. "I'm digging a hole for my father. He needs better drainage in this area of his farm." The other man nodded and said, "That's good of you. But why are you singing?"
The digging man pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his brow. "Yes, it's a bit warm today, and this is not the easiest work. However, six months ago, I took a bad fall from a roof I was repairing. I broke my leg, and the doctors told me I might never have use of it again. But it didn't work out that way. I healed much faster than they expected, or believed possible. After a month, I could walk again, and every day since then has been better." The man paused and then continued. "Before you came up and spoke to me, I thought about the fact I could be unable to walk or work. But God had mercy on me, and here I am. I can dig this hole. No, the better way to say it is I get to dig this hole!" The man smiled, and then concluded, "Actually, there is another reason I sing, and more important than the happiness I feel in being able to move about. My father has been the best father I can imagine. It is always a blessing to do anything for him. How can I help but sing?" The digging man paused, and a tear mingled with the sweat on his cheek as he said. "Yes, I get to dig this hole for my father!"
Life changes when "I get to" becomes the grateful and guiding sensibility of our hearts. We join the digging man who found delight in that which could just as easily been drudgery. As believers, God saved us from our sins and their eternal consequences by the price He paid through His beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. He raised us up and enabled us to walk with Him as our God for all eternity. In this bright and wondrous light, how can we not echo the digging man? "My Father has been the best Father I can imagine. It is always a blessing to do anything for Him!" "O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him" (Psalm 34:8).
"I get to!" Anything God calls us to do after redeeming us from our sins must be viewed in this holy light of privilege. Certainly, the responsibility of "I must" accompanies our sense of blessedness in whatever lies at hand, be it pleasant or challenging. However, all begins with privilege, that is, our Father is the best Father we can imagine. He has redeemed us from a fate too horrible to contemplate. Indeed, it is as much a gift of grace to be able to do anything for Him as it is that He has done so much for us. How can we help but sing, regardless of what life brings to us of responsibility to God and people? The privilege of being sons and daughters of so glorious a Father, along with His redeeming work on our behalf, surely composes within the depth of our spirits a song that must and will come forth when we embrace "I get to!" as the guiding light of all we do.
"I will sing unto the Lord, because He hath dealt bountifully with me."
(Psalm 13:6)
"Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God."
(I Corinthians 10:31)
"We love Him because He first loved us."
(I John 4:19)
Weekly Memory Verse
We love Him because He first loved us.
(I John 4:19)
6898
No comments:
Post a Comment