June 20

”For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23 NIV)

One can’t earn a gift. Nor can one purchase a gift for oneself. Then it’s no longer a gift. We are all showered with gifts simply because we are humans. Life is in itself such a gift. Each morning is a gift that we all accept, most often as simply self-evident, or as a given. But there are many gifts that simply lie in wait for a willing receiver.

As a Christian I have received and accepted the gift of salvation – a gift that Jesus Christ has offered to all people, but one that can only be experienced by those who accept it. ”Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God…” (John 1:12 NIV).

In salvation’s gift lies also the gift of forgiveness. When we accept God’s forgiveness in our lives it’s a gift God wants us to pass on to others. The word forgiveness in the Bible’s foundation text is closely tied to the words ’to give’. No Christian needs to carry ill will or animosity against another person, but rather freely, once and for all, give as a gift that which you received as a gift.

Prayer

Lord, help me today to live with an outpouring of forgiveness. If someone mistreats me, I pray that you will help me to gladly forgive him or her.