The Gift of an Apple
Father,
Thank you
for waking us up this morning. Please
help us to overcome any obstacles this week may present and help us to be aware
and appreciative of all the blessings it will bring.
Help us to
be a light, a bright reflection of Your glory, to our families, our coworkers,
and friends.
As we go
through each day, walk by our side, be our guide, companion, and loving Father.
We ask these
things in Jesus’ Holy Name, Amen
I was the
first grandchild born to Oliver and Kathleen Marsh, but, I was quickly followed
by my brother and a large number of cousins. Grandma and
Papa Marsh’s house was not far from my own, so I was able to be a part of their
lives each week. I made countless good
memories there. Grandma was
then, as she is now, very maternal and loving.
Growing up, she took me on shopping trips to the mall and bought me
little girly things. She’d rock me to
sleep at my request even when I was too old to need it. And, I enjoyed many a summer at White Lake by
her side. As an adult, she has always
been encouraging and supportive. Though
biased, Grandma has always made me feel like I am as good as anyone else on the
planet. It is certain I have never
doubted that Grandma has thought me special.
Papa was the
quiet type. He enjoyed the simple things
in life and was a man of few words. I
knew Papa loved me, but in a more reserved fashion than Grandma. With Papa, his demonstrations of love were
small things like an ice cream sandwich from Pete’s store in Cameron or a
carefully created set of 3 Little Bear Chairs or a wooden heart piggy bank. I
loved my Papa. I knew he loved me, but
because he never just came right out and said it aloud to me, the moments he
clearly paid attention to me were as valuable as prized jewels.
By the time
I was about six years old, Papa and Grandma Marsh had four grandchildren. Christmas that year was, as usual, an
extended family affair with all of their offspring gathered together in one
house to enjoy a meal, conversation, and a gift exchange. As kids will
do, I began to search for my name on the package tags under the Christmas
tree. I saw “To Marlene From Papa and
Grandma” on several of the gifts. But,
on one small roundish, firm feeling present the label simply read, “To Marlene
From Papa.” I was transfixed. The label said, “To Marlene From Papa” and it
was in different handwriting than all the others.
Now, even in
my own brief experiences with Christmas, I had figured out one thing for sure,
gifts from Papa and Grandma were chosen, purchased, wrapped, and labeled by my
Grandma. So, to see one imperfectly
wrapped gift with a label that listed only Papa on the From line was a
deviation from the norm I had known. I took the
gift to my father to show him. I asked
him if he thought the gift was really from my Papa…was the tag in his
handwriting….did he think my Papa had really chosen the gift for me….did he
think Papa really wrapped it for me? He
answered all my questions in the affirmative.
As with most
family Christmas gatherings, the Opening of the Gifts was painfully postponed
until after visiting and mealtime. But,
I would not be parted with that gift…that smallest of the gifts under the
tree. I carried the little roundish
semi-ball shaped item with me as I played in the yard and it sat beside me when
I ate. When it was
finally time to open the gifts, I opened this gift first. Inside the now badly damaged Christmas
wrapping paper was a bumped up and bruised red delicious apple. A simple apple.
Was I
disappointed? Absolutely not. That apple was a gift from Papa for me. He chose it for me. He wrapped it for me. He wrote my name on the tag and placed Papa
on the From line. He hadn’t just given
me an apple; he’d given me a whole afternoon of feeling special. I loved knowing I was special to Papa…I
wouldn’t have traded that gift for any trinket.
All of us
realize that we are surrounded by many other people in our lives. We cannot always be the favorite child,
favorite sibling, favorite employee….we know we are one of many, yet we cannot
help but want to know we are special to someone. Most especially, we hunger to know we are
important to our father, to our grandfather.
My own earthly father and grandfathers have gone on to their rest. But, I still have a Father, my Father in
heaven. My desire to be special to Him is as great a need now as it was to be
special to my Father and Grandfathers. I
know my Heavenly Father loves all of His children, yet I still want to be
special to Him. I want to know that I am
special to Him.
What about
you? Do you ever question if the Lord
really hears you and sees you? Really
cares about you? Really sees you as
unique and special when He has billions of other children on this earth?
The Bible is
clear; you can know that you ARE special to the Lord!
Psalm
139:13-14 You alone created my inner being. You knitted me together
inside my mother. I will give thanks
to you because I
have been so amazingly and miraculously made. Your works are miraculous,
and my soul is fully aware of this.
This Psalm reminds us that we are created by God. Have you ever watched someone lovingly create
anything….like a woman sewing a quilt block by block…a man building a car
engine part by part….a chef creating a meal ingredient by ingredient? We are told the Lord knit us together in our
mothers. Can you envision what this
means? He knows you as intimately as a
clockmaker knows his clock.
Have you ever created anything? I made a scarf recently. I chose the yarn myself….carefully selecting
the perfect skein based upon the color I desired, the soft texture I loved, and
what I envisioned as the final look. I
carefully wove the yarn night after night, pulling the yarn tight here,
loosening it there to get a beautiful finished product that I would be proud to
wear and claim as my own design. Now, when
I look in my drawer of store bought scarves, the only one that truly stands out
to me is the one that I created myself…because I know every inch of it well, because
my own hands made it, because I chose every quality it possesses. If I feel this way over length of woven scarf
I created, how much more so your creator must feel about you!
1 Peter 2:9
However, you are chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, people
who belong to God. You were chosen to tell about the excellent qualities
of God, who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
AND
Genesis
1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created
him; male and female he created them.
God not only
created you, He chose you to belong to Him.
He created you in His image to tell others about His excellent
qualities. Think about it….God is
Holy…He is Royal…He is Magnificent….He is Glorious... He is light…and we haven’t even touched the
surface of all of His qualities. He chose you to demonstrate His qualities to
the world….what must this say about you?
Psalm
119:73-74 You made me; you created me. Now give me the sense to
follow your commands. May all who fear you find in me a cause for joy, for
I have put my hope in your Word.
This Psalm
reaffirms that we are made by God. We
are to stay in communication with our creator, following His wishes. Think about this carefully. Those things that you have created are
valuable and special to you, correct?
You wish NO harm to come to them.
You are especially careful with them. Right? Choices you make as to the care of a quilt
you sewed, a car engine you built, a scarf you knitted take into consideration
the implications for the item because you care very much what happens to
them. It is the same with your
creator….asking for and following His guidance is prudent, as He cares deeply
about what happens to you.
Isaiah 64:8
Yet you, LORD, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are
all the work of your hand.
Have you
ever watch a potter at work on the wheel?
He takes a lump of shapeless clay…clay that in its original form cannot
serve in any capacity…and with skilled hands and focused attention; he slowly
raises that clay up from a lump into a glorious, useful form of art. The potter will take the clay and create a
pitcher to serve fresh water, a platter to serve a meal, a vase to hold
beautiful flowers. Did you know that if
a flawed area arises in the process, he does NOT throw the project away….he
takes it back down to lump form and begins the upward rise again? The potter does not give up, he carefully
crafts the clay despite any imperfections that may arise, into the beautiful
piece he knows it will become. When
complete, the potter is satisfied and proud to display his work. The Lord will not give up on you….you are His
work of art.
Matthew
10:29-31 What is the price of two sparrows–one copper coin? But not a
single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. And
the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are
more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.
Many know
this comforting verse. Sparrows are all
around us, too numerous to number, yet we are told that not one in all the
world dies without our Father knowing it.
The scripture goes even further, reminding us that our Father even knows
how many hairs are on our heads. Think
of that, as special as your spouse is to you, as beloved as your mother, father,
brother, sister, or child is to you, you have no idea how many hairs are on
their heads. Yet, you are so special to
your Father; He DOES have this information about you.
If he values
all sparrows enough to keep track of every one, imagine the value He places on
the child on whom He knows each hair.
Jeremiah
1:4-5 The LORD gave me this message: “I knew you before I formed you
in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed
you as my prophet to the nations.”
The Lord
knew you before He even formed you in your mother’s room.
Jeremiah
29:11:For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to
prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
If you have
been a Christian for any length of time, you have heard this verse. Listen to what it says to you….The Lord has
PLANS for you. He didn’t form you, then
set your feet on this planet to let you bumble around and to find your way in a
random fashion. He made plans for your
life. His plans for you are for you to
prosper. To prosper is to be
successful. The Lord plans for you to be
successful. And Hope! The Lord loves you enough to give you hope
and make plans for your future. You must
be special for the God of the universe to make plans for your future.
Ephesians
2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good
works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
The Lord
created you! Over and over the Bible
states that you are the work of His hands!
Psalm 139:16
You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
The Lord knew
you even before you were born. The Lord had every day of your life recorded in
His book. Did your mother have a baby
book for you? Did you keep a school book
for your children? You only go to the
effort to keep a book about all the details of someone’s life when that someone
is VERY special to you. God is keeping
details about you in a book because you are that special to Him.
1 Corinthians 12:25-28 This makes for
harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. If
one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all
the parts are glad. All of you together are Christ’s body, and each
of you is a part of it. Here are some of the parts God has appointed for
the church: first are apostles, second are prophets, third are teachers, then
those who do miracles, those who have the gift of healing, those who can help
others, those who have the gift of leadership, those who speak in unknown
languages.
AND
1 Peter
4:10-11 God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of
spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. Do you have the gift
of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you
have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that
God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus
Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.
The Lord
considers each of us so special, that He didn’t give us all the same
gifts. He handpicked a particular gift
for each of us.
Psalm 139:2-4 You know when I sit down or
stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel and when I rest at
home. You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even
before I say it, LORD.
The day to
day activities of life can seem mundane.
Do you know every time your own
child stands or sits? Do you even give it
a great deal of thought when you do it yourself? God knows when you do. He knows your thoughts, keeps His eye on you
when you travel and when you stay home.
He even knows your words before you form them. The God of history, the
present, and the future…the Creator of the entire Universe considers you so
special, He is mindful of your every act, thought, and word.
Romans 8:32
Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t
he also give us everything else?
For whom
would you give your own child as a sacrifice?
The Lord gave you, gave YOU, His very own son to pay the penalty of your
sin so you can gain entrance to Heaven.
Would He have permitted His own son to suffer for you if you were not
special to Him?
Father,
We realize
that our sins break Your divine laws and that the penalty for our
transgressions is eternal death and separation from you. We are grateful that You sent Your own
beloved Son as a sinless sacrifice for us….that His death atones for our
sins….that because He paid the penalty of death with His death to give us an
everlasting life. We openly confess our
full faith in our salvation through Jesus Christ. Help us, daily, to grow in our personal
relationship with Jesus, so that we will better know the One that died so that
will live.
It is in the
name of Jesus we pray, Amen
The same
Christ that is present in the Old Testament, revealed in the New Testament, and
displayed in Creation is the same Christ that is interwoven in the fabric of
the lives of His people. God is the
Master of the Universe, yet cares deeply about every tiny detail of your day. Seek the Biblical lessons to be learned in all
of your experiences.