Somewhere Along the Way

Last week I was at a restaurant with a couple good friends and we witnessed a kid about 6 years old slam himself down on the seat at a table next to us and angrily fold his arms in defiance. He did it in such a way that he believed his dad was going to be sorry he didn't get him that toy he wanted at the register. His dad calmly sat down at the next open table and said "Ok I'm gonna eat over here without you". The kid quickly moved to his dad's table and started eating his food, still angry. At first I chuckled to myself and kept eating my food, but later it struck me. How many times do we act like this? I cannot tell you how many times I have heard adults say to one another that they deserve to be happy, that they deserve to buy a bigger home, a nicer car, or a 53" flat screen TV. In fact, I have said these same things. But the hard truth of the matter is that we don't deserve any of these things.

I've noticed that many Christians have the "I deserve it" attitude. How did we get here? Somewhere along the way, we forgot our place before God. We forgot that we have done nothing to obtain grace. We don't deserve God's grace (that's why it's called "grace"). We don't deserve a flat screen TV. Men, you don't deserve season tickets. Ladies, you don't deserve chocolate. The only thing that we truly deserve is hell. I don't know about you, but I'm incredibly thankful that God hasn't given me what I deserve. According to Romans 8, God made us co-heirs with Christ. That's the complete opposite of giving us what we deserve! I hope that I can live my life as a reflection of the gift I have received. I hope that we can become increasingly aware of all that we don't deserve so that we can give Him the glory.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-by grace you have been saved.  -Ephesians 2:4-6