SpringCleaning! Put a Ring on It – March 14

SpringCleaning!
March 14, 2021

Put a Ring on It

Luke 15:20-24, ‘”But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’” ”But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. And bring the fatted calf here and kill it and let us eat and be merry; for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and now is found.”’ (NKJV)

We are to be the hands and feet of Jesus. We are to be carriers of His grace and love to all people. We have such a message to share with others, the same message that someone shared with us. It is wrapped up inside of us just waiting to be given to another. It was free to us, and it is free for us to give away to someone else, and we carry that in our hands and by our feet with whom we come in contact. In fact, it’s a double whammy, because it is free and a gift. And you received it and now you have it to give away too.

Imagine it this way. You have been given a gift. In fact, you know the giver of this gift as being someone who only ever gives the finest of gifts, priceless treasures. This giver has placed in your hands a beautifully wrapped present. The paper is shimmery and shiny, perfectly wrapped, and tendrils of ribbons cascade over the sides and it has a big, beautiful bow right on top. When this gift is given to you, don’t you want to open it and see what is inside? I mean, this giver has never let you down before, right? So aren’t you anxious to see what this giver has given you this time? You’re not going to politely say thank you and just set it aside on the table and decide that maybe on another day you’ll check it out. You’re going to rip it open and dig through the insides until you unearth what the bearer of your gift has brought you. Or perhaps the wrapping paper is so pretty that you cautiously use a knife to remove the sutures so you can relish and reuse the gift wrap for a later and memorable occasion. Whatever the case may be, we all are anxiously curious human beings and fascinated to know what someone thought enough of us to give.
Well, you have someone Who loves you so much He gave His best gift and that is His Son. He gave His best for you. And He also gave His best for your friend, your colleague, your neighbor. He even gave His best for your enemy. And you and I are the common denominator between the God Who loves us and those we know or don’t know but just a little. And just like He doesn’t intend for us to leave His gift unopened, He also doesn’t intend for us to leave it unshared. So, take this gift and open it up and peek at what is inside; it will take you a lifetime, and then eternity, to enjoy it and fully know its benefit.

This time I am not washing my hands of this SpringCleaning task, and I will shore up my feet to make great strides in sharing my gift with someone else. Join me?

Come with me in March and let’s clean house!
If you are anything like me, you have kept some things around far too long
and now they got to go! And with the Lord’s help, they can!