A view of Seattle from the Space Needle
Once we had settled into our hotel room in Seattle, my family and I loaded
into our rented Lincoln SUV and headed off for some much-needed provisions.
Somewhere during our trek however, we managed to lose one of the two key-cards
to our hotel room. Even though there was no room number or address on the card,
we were unsure how the receptionist would welcome losing one of his key cards,
and so the search began.
First we went through the vehicle.
Nothing.
Next we meticulously investigated our grocery bags.
Zilch.
Where could it be? Had I given it as a tip to one of the sales clerk?
I sure hoped not, but one can never be sure with my dementia-riddled brain!
Or maybe my kids used it to make a plastic airplane?
Nah! Too heavy! Besides, they denied having ever seen it.
I glanced over at my wife in defeat.
"I say let's not worry about it," she suggested.
I thought about it for a minute, then I nodded. She was right. We had tried our
best to find it, without success. Worst-case scenario, we'd be charged for it.
We weren't, though, when we checked out the next day. The clerk didn't even ask
about the second key card. Worrying never pays off, does it?
Unlike us humans, when we confide in Jesus, He is always 100% responsible. He
never loses anything! In fact, in His final prayer, Jesus could confidently
declare: "I have not lost one of those you gave me." (John 18:9 NIV)
Just after this declaration He ordered those arresting Him: "If you are looking
for me, then let these men go. This happened so that the words he had spoken
would be fulfilled: 'I have not lost one of those you gave me.'" (John 18:8-9
NIV)"
If we look more closely to Jesus' statement however, we realize that some of His
disciples could have been lost if they had been arrested with Jesus. They were
mere humans, like the rest of us, and after Jesus' capture, the last thing they
wanted to do was to be seen in public. In fact, they went into hiding: "The
disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews." (John
20:19 NIV)
But wait a minute! Why was it that they were so afraid? They had walked with
Jesus for the past 3½ years! They had experienced his out-of-the-world miracles
first-hand!
Yes, this is true. However none of them had yet experienced the power of Jesus'
resurrection. Without His resurrection they were doomed to remain in their
miserable condition, shivering from the fear of those who could do them harm!
The same is true with each one of us. If you haven't yet experienced the
resurrected Jesus in your life, you will be far from being victorious. However,
when you read the following Biblical promises, you can see the power that is at
YOUR disposal, provided by Jesus' resurrection:
"A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind,
has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal
tyranny at the hands of sin and death." (Rom 8:2 The Message)
"Don't even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life.
Throw yourselves wholeheartedly and full-time - remember, you've been raised
from the dead! - into God's way of doing things. Sin can't tell you how to live.
After all, you're not living under that old tyranny any longer. You're living in
the freedom of God." (Rom 6:13-14)
"It stands to reason, doesn't it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised
Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he'll do the same thing in you that he
did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself? When God lives and breathes in you
(and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead
life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ's! So
don't you see that we don't owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent.
There's nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a
decent burial and get on with your new life. God's Spirit beckons. There are
things to do and places to go!" (Rom 8:11-14 The Message)
Have you lost something lately? Better leave it in Jesus' hands!
If you lost yourself during your trek through this world, Jesus can help you
find the way. He is faithful, and He's much more responsible than any of us!
"I am the way and the truth and the life." (John 14:6 NIV)
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
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The Nugget: Published three times a week, this newsletter features inspirational devotionals and mini-sermons dedicated to drawing mankind closer to each other and to Christ.