I really like free gifts with my purchases. I know that this is something I got from my mother, because we pretty much never miss a Clinique bonus time. Why wouldn't you wait and buy your ridiculously priced make-up when you could also get a free lipstick, eye liner, and blush? I honestly can't remember the last time I had to buy something other than foundation from the Clinique counter. I guess a good foundation has many benefits, right?
Make-up freebies may be nice, but they can't even compare to the free gifts that God has given me. Because I'm a Christ follower, God has not only given me eternal life, but He given me the opportunity to have a fulfilled earthly existence. God has given me joy, peace, and the confidence that has allowed me to hand Him the details of my life.
I used to think that living the Christian life was a lot of hard work. Taking the high and narrow road in life isn't easy. I remember reading Pilgrim's Progress in school and thinking that anyone who chooses to follow Christ is signing up for a really hard journey. But I completely missed the point.
The life that Christ followers are called to live is an abnormal existence. But it's not supposed to be hard. Along with the gift of Salvation, Christ sent us His Spirit which fills us with joy and peace. We could never obtain joy and peace on our own, so God made it His other free gift with purchase. Not only do we get the free gift of Salvation when we die, but we get the free gift of His Holy Spirit to help us live our earthly life. Being "in Christ" has a lot more perks than people think. As Romans says, when we trust God, He fills us with joy and peace so that we overflow with hope.
As Christ followers, we probably will travel on a crazy journey like Pilgrim did in John Bunyan's story. We might get cancer, experience natural disasters, be personally touched by war, or suffer persecution for our faith. But if we're filled with the Holy Spirit, these experiences shouldn't be hard for us--they should be bearable and make us images of hope. The odds are great that we're going to suffer from some kind of misery in our earthly life at some point in time. So why wouldn't we want to face the hard times with God's joy and peace?
The next time you see a free gift with purchase, remember that God created the concept. He purchased us, gave us the free gift of eternal life, and then gave us the goodie bag filled with all the necessary tools for life. If we trust Him, God promises that His Spirit will fill us with joy and peace and make us overflow with hope. Talk about an amazing foundation!
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