Reminded of His Gift.

Yesterday morning I went to church at Discover Church, and they were celebrating their eighth anniversary. I’ve been attending this church since about October, and I love it! It reminds me a lot of my church back home and I get a lot out of the Pastor’s teaching. Since yesterday was their anniversary they were celebrating everything God had done through their church and what all had been accomplished for His glory. One thing I really liked about the service was that it was so encouraging, like that God had just started His work in the church and that they have so much more to do for His kingdom. They weren’t centered on what all the church had done, but rather the fact that God had chosen to use them in the lives of so many different people.

During the service, the pastor said one phrase that really stuck with me. It wasn’t a main point, and I bet many people left church that morning without giving this sentence a second thought. I, however, was really struck by this phrase and was pleasantly reminded of how much my Father loves me. The pastor said:

“God paid the highest price to give you the best gift, for free.”

Now I know this is a phrase that seems to be thrown around all the time, whether it be as a strong point in a sermon or as a lyric in a worship song. It’s not really anything new, and I know I’ve heard it many times before. However, yesterday it happened to be exactly what I needed to hear.

So often I forget that God actually had to pay to give me salvation and eternal life. It’s so easy to just assume that since God can do everything, he just magically snapped his fingers and gave me eternal life. I let myself forget the power behind His mighty act of saving me, and I get caught up in the fact that he saved me. I focus on the fact that I have been given this new life, and that I don’t need to fear death because I have something better. It’s all about me, me, me.

Then I am bluntly reminded that it’s about God. Not me, not the people surrounding me, not any other single person on this earth. It’s about Him. He was the one who graciously saved me and every other sinner on this earth. He is the one who created this beautiful, perfect earth, and us sinners are the ones who ruined it. He is the one who died on the cross, and it was me and my sins put Him there. He suffered the most severe pain, He was betrayed by everyone close to Him, and He was the one who went through the worst of the worst to save a fallen world. It’s so ridiculous how I make it all about me, when the only part I really play is the bad guy.

By realizing that it’s God’s story and not mine, I am overwhelmed with a renewed sense of humility. I realize once again that I am so small, and that God is so huge. He surrounds me, controls my life, knows my inner thoughts and intentions, and yet loves me more than I could ever begin to comprehend. He continues to shatter any sense of importance I place in myself, and makes me so appreciative that I have his gift of life.

I know it sounds so cliché, but the thought of living life on my own and trying to get myself through it all sounds miserable. My embarrassingly-frequent selfish moments are bad enough; I can’t imagine living a whole life without any consideration for someone bigger than myself. I’m a terrible sinner, a rotten person, a self-consumed and pride-centered individual in desperate need of a Savior. And I thank my Father above that I have been given one who paid the greatest price for me.