Saturday, May 02, 2015

The Gift

On my desk when I returned from lunch I discovered a gay yellow wrapped gift with luscious chocolate truffles inside. What is this, I wondered? Lori, the VP of Management, gave me a gift for Administrative Assistant’s week. This sweet gesture was unexpected and certainly undeserved from my perspective, as I support another executive.

Aren’t those the best gifts? The ones we don’t expect and don’t deserve?

Peter tells us: His divine power has freely given to us everything we need for a life of godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called use by His own glory and might by means of which He has freely given to us His precious and splendid promises, so that through them you may escape the corruption that is in the world caused by sinful desire and become partakers of the divine nature. (2 Peter 2:3-4).   

God gives us everything we need, not just for a plain old ordinary life, but to live a life like Jesus did: a god-like, glorious life. We are welcome at Jesus’ table to partake in His nature. I love that word, “partake” like we get to be on His team, be invited to His party. 

This is what God has given to us when we believe in His Son Jesus. The Holy Spirit is freely given to us. It is unexpected and undeserved. It is extravagant and exhaustive. It is everything we need.

And what do we do with such a gift? As for the truffles, I opened them and ate them, of course! Later, I shared some with some of the other women in the office.

Some gifts end up in the back of a closet, or even in the garbage. We lose them, break them, re-gift them.

Like all gifts, God’s Holy Spirit is meant to be used and enjoyed. The Christian life is about just plain ordinary people tapping into the extraordinary power of God. Ordinary people like me. Like you. We don’t try harder to live a godly life. We merely grow closer to God, by staying in relationship with Him by prayer, reading His Word, meeting and worshipping together, serving others together. As we stay close to God, He transforms us.

God wants to transform you too. Have you stayed close enough to Him to let Him? Have you opened your gift?

More on opening your gift, click here.

Read what Peter said yourself: 2 Peter 1:1-11

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