“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning””(James 1:17).
No matter what the occasion, we all love to receive gifts. The fact someone cared enough to shop, wrap and present something for us is precious to us. However, these gifts are temporal.
The fact God went to extra lengths to give us the greatest gift of all—salvation—is priceless. He even goes the extra mile by bestowing on us spiritual gifts and abundant blessings.
We do nothing to merit His giving. Everything we have, everything we are comes from our Creator. We can count on His faithfulness because He never changes. Dr. Grant Richison further explains this concept: “God’s gifts to us are good because they come from His character and not from our performance. Because God is God, His gifts never lose their intrinsic (essential) value. God does not stop giving to us when we fail Him. To insinuate that God is not good or generous is to misrepresent who He is.”
If we succeed as body builders it will be because God has given us everything we need to accomplish His will. Dr. Richison also said, “We love to take the credit for who we are and what we do. When we stop to think, we remember we operate by God’s unadulterated grace.”
Sue Winchester
Missouri
PRAY TOGETHER: Each part of the body serves an important function. Experiencing knee troubles? Perhaps we don’t bend them enough in prayer. Father, today, we pray the words of Paul in Ephesians 3:14-21 for your missionary servants around the world:
“For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.”
