Two bites into dinner and right on cue the phone rings. I could ignore it, but it might be a call about my mom who lives in an Assisted Living facility. I run to answer and am greeted by the now familiar tones of the automated robocall.
Robots, it seems, have become a part of our daily lives. They can do some amazing things,
- Cook (I have to admit, this one is tempting)
- Work in a pharmacy prepping meds
- Make deliveries
- Perform surgery
just to name a few.
Brilliant minds have accomplished astounding things in recent years, but as amazing as all that may seem, robots do have their limits. They can only do what they have been programed to do.
A far more brilliant mind has done what our inventors cannot do. The God of all creation formed man in His own image from the dust of the earth and breathed life into him. The breath filling his lungs carried with it eternal life and something else beyond the ability of man to create - free will.
I confess I sometimes wish God had created me a bit more like those nifty robots. Perhaps then I wouldn’t repeatedly stumble and fall over the same sins. Imagine doing things perfectly right all the time. Imagine, too, how empty that “perfect” life would be without the ability to choose.
When God gave us our free will, it came wrapped in a gift created long before Adam ever drew his first breath. God looked ahead in time and knew the choices we would make, knew there would have to be a way to restore the relationship we would inevitably sever with our disobedience.
This holy, triune God held His beloved Son close and with a love beyond comprehension made a way for us to come back home to Him. He called it forgiveness. No more costly gift could be given. Yet He freely gives it to everyone who reaches out in faith to accept it.
Pastor Doug began his sermon by saying, concerning forgiveness,“It is the most important word known to mankind.” Truly no word could have more worth or power. We will all sin at one time or another and find ourselves separated from God - far from the home we will eventually long for. The things of this life will never satisfy or fill the void in our souls fashioned for the One who created us.
When we find ourselves longing for home, for the place where we have a relationship with God and a hope for eternity, we find He has been waiting for us all along. We don’t have to go far before we see Him running toward us - arms open wide. He will draw us close and wrap us in a garment of forgiveness. We will have come home.
Blessings,
Linda
