One morning this past summer, during our morning walk, my wife and I
stopped for a break at our usual bistro. It was a beautiful morning, and
we decided to sit outside and enjoy the sunshine. Sitting at a nearby
table was a group of three or four people listening to a man describe in
minute detail, and in a very clear and ecstatic voice, his experience of
undergoing surgery at a hospital in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
As he related his story, it became obvious to me that he was the
recipient of a heart transplant. As I myself had been through the
experience of open-heart surgery as a teenager in the very early days of
that procedure, I was interested in his story.
The man at the
table was expressing his feelings about the experience in a joyous
voice, telling his listeners just how grateful he was towards the
doctors, the technicians, and the nurses. Just as I was getting ready to
leave, one of his listeners asked the man if the surgery had given him a
new outlook on life. Once again, the man related in a voice still full
of thankfulness how he awakens each day with joy in his heart just to be
alive. He went on in a quieter and more reverent tone of voice that each
day, he remembers, "Someone had to die in order that I may live, and
each day, I try to live life to its fullest." As I walked away from my
table, I suddenly became overwhelmed by the thought that, just like for
that man, Someone had to die in order that I may live my life to its
fullest.
John 10:10: "The thief enters only to steal, kill, and
destroy. I came so that they could have life indeed, so that they could
live life to the fullest." (CEB)
Jesus died on the cross that we
might, through the regeneration of the soul, attain the newness of heart
that gives us life in its abundance. Those who are in Christ are born
again. Do we rise each morning with a heartfelt sense of gratitude for
His sacrifice? Are we as emphatic in our witness to the newness of our
heart, received as a gift through the death of our Lord Jesus?
Prayer: Dear Lord, by the power of Your abundant grace, bestow on each
of us the gift of a grateful and courageous heart, in order that we may
ardently express to others the fullness of our gratitude for Jesus. We
earnestly pray for all those who, this day, are seeking Your kingdom,
Your love, and Your grace. Amen.
Ron Nichol
Vernon, British Columbia, Canada
Thanks to
PresbyCan Daily Devotiona
