Gift

During the Lenten luncheon today, Eva sang "Holy City" and then Luana highlighted a particular line in the song:

The gates were open wide,
And all who would might enter
And no one was denied.

It made me think of an analogy I use in our Grace class sometimes. Think of God offering you a gift. It's wrapped and beautiful, but you set it down and never go back to open it. Your choice is to ignore it, but the gift has still been given. Compare that to someone telling you you can have a gift if you work hard enough.

Both of them are gifts. One of them is given out of love; one is given out of a sense of obligation. Which is grace? God doesn't judge our worthiness before he offers us the gift of his love. He offers it, and then we judge whether to accept it or not.