Queen for a day...princess forever!

Saturday, my friends and I went to Medieval Times in New Jersey. We had a ball! All the sword play, horsemanship, falconry, medieval style food; it was fantastic. After the Knights had finished their tournament games they each got to give out a sash to someone in their part of the audience; the woman or girl they picked would be Queen of the Tournament. The Knight that I was cheering for rode up to our section, looked right at me and lowered his lance, which had the sash on it, and said,

"This is for you."
I was too shocked to do anything. I just sat there thinking he meant someone else. So I asked him,

"For me?"

He smiled and nodded, then asked,

"Can you stand?"

You see, I couldn't reach the sash from where I was sitting, and he couldn't lower his lance any further, (there was a Plexiglas wall in the way), so I had to stand to receive my gift. It required effort on my part; I had to choose whether or not I would accept the beautiful gift being given to me.

It is the same in our relationship with Jesus

Jesus stands before us, smiling at us, holding out His salvation, His favor, His faithfulness, His unending love for us. He is consistently and forever saying,

"This is for you."

But He won't ever force it on you; He won't throw it in your face. He will wait for you to accept Him, all the while gently asking,

"Can you stand?" 

"Can you receive my gift?" 

"Can you receive my love for you?"

I encourage you to accept whatever gift Jesus is giving to you today. Whether it be salvation, freedom from sin and death, friendship, grace, joy, a closer walk with Him; whatever it is, rise up, stand up and accept with a heart full of delight that which He is lovingly bestowing on you.

Be blessed!