If It's Free It's For Me!


It It's Free It's For Me!  What it means to accept God's free gift of salvation.


"If it's free it's for me!" is a phrase my husband coined during a family vacation which included touring the dairy farms of Vermont and sampling cheeses at various roadside country stores.  I'm pretty sure I remember some of these stops having samples of fudge available too!  You could pretty much make a meal out of all the free samples!  There certainly was a "method to the madness" of these roadside stores offering so many free samples - to draw in customers to the wonderful tastes of Vermont.  And it worked!  We were certainly one of those customers.

We have a Heavenly Father whose Spirit draws us to Himself offering the free gift of Salvation in Christ Jesus.   If we are so attracted to free THINGS on this earth, why do we find it hard to accept the free gift of salvation OR feel as though we must work toward receiving this gift.  Isn't the very nature of a gift that you don't have to pay for it - that it's been given to you?   Let alone when something is marked for free, it means without cost or payment.

If it's Free, it's NOT for Me


Recently, my husband and I witnessed what appeared to be a case of shoplifting.  The person was parked outside a major department store right next to our car, but his car was running.  As I locked my door, I happened to notice him taking pictures of men's shirts draped over the back of his backseat, still on the hangers.  At first I thought this odd, but it became more apparent what was going on when a minute later, I saw a woman running from the department store door through the parking lot carrying what looked like 15 toddler outfits - still on hangers with no bag and no evidence that she had a pocketbook.  

As we drove away, I wondered if this family was so desperate that they resorted to desperate measures.  Maybe this is something that was so out of character for them.  I don't know...   But instead of making payment for the items, they took the clothes as if they were free...

It is sad that there are people in this world who have no issue with stealing.  Yet I believe that most people have a natural aversion to taking something that doesn't belong to them.   In the case of a person's loving charity, that natural aversion, though, can stop us from blessing the giver as it can be humbling to accept monetary gifts or material gifts that are free when we are down on our luck.  It can make us feel uncomfortable.

In the same way, when we feel as though we have to work toward entrance into eternal life, we are acting as though we are taking something from God that we do not deserve... yet...   As if our actions will make us right with the Lord.   That very thinking is the opposite of humbling; it's actually pride...

We CANNOT earn our way into Heaven. 

If God Says it's Free, then it's Free!


There are many things in this world we can receive for free, but there is only One thing that we can take in this life without making payment, and that is the free gift of Eternal Life through Christ Jesus.


For the wages of sin is death, 
but the free gift of God is eternal life 
in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6:23


Jesus died on the cross so that the debt WE owed, for all of our sins, would be marked PAID IN FULL.  

When we confess our sins to God, and believe that the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus paid our sin debt in full; turn away from our sins and accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, we can take the free gift of Eternal Life where a wellspring of many other free gifts will flow through to us...


The free gift of the Holy Spirit, our Helper, our guide...

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. 
John 14:26

However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.
John 16:13-15 

The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD— 
Isaiah 11:2


The free gift of peace...

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
John 14:27

In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.
Psalm 4:8

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, 
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:7


The free gift of wisdom...

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, 
and it will be given him.
James 1:5

For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, 
which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict.
Luke 21:15


The free gift of knowledge and understanding...

For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
Proverbs 2:6

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.
Psalm 32:8

For wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
Proverbs 2:10


The free gift of profound love...

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us 
and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
1 John 4:10

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:35-39

But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16

...I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.
Jeremiah 31:3

And to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge,
 that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3:19

For as high as the heavens are above the earth, 
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
Psalm 103:11


If you haven't taken the free gift of Eternal Life, a gift that requires NO payment {you can't work your way into Heaven},  please consider all that Christ Jesus has already done for YOU so that when you die, you can live eternally in Heaven with Him, and while on this earth, enjoy ALL the free gifts that are yours through freedom in Christ, if only you will believe and take hold of...

For God says,

“At just the right time, I heard you.
    On the day of salvation, I helped you.”
Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.
2 Corinthians 6:2

To read my Salvation story, please head over to my post, The  Story God Wrote For Me - Anxiety Saved Me, which you can read HERE.

 For those of us who have already taken hold of the free gift of Eternal Life, may we continually take from the abundance of other free gifts available to us through Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior, doing so with a heart of gratitude and love.




You might find me on these link-ups:

Grace & TruthWoman to Woman Ministries, Inspire Me MondayA Wise Women Builds Her HomeSpiritual Sundays, Soul Survival,  Good Morning MondaysTell His StoryFaith & Fellowship Blog Hop  Tuesday Talk   Faith 'N Friends Sitting Among Friends   House to Home  ,Wonderful Wednesday , Literacy Musings Mondays,Imparting GraceDance with Jesus Booknificent Thursdays  Fresh Market Friday Moments of Hope Wonderful Wednesdays , Tea & Word Tuesday Heart Encouragement Thursday Hearts for Home Messy Marriage Link-up Friday at the Fire Station Link-up Tune In Thursday Faith on Fire Link-upSunday Scripture Blessings Link-up, Sunday ThoughtsWriter Wednesday, Faith Filled Friday God Sized Dreams Link-Up Sitting Among Friends Be Thee Inspired Graceful Tuesday Link-up Aprons & Pearls Link-up Trekkingthru Link-up  Encouraging Word Wednesday  Grace Moments Link-up  Encouraging Hearts and Home Worth Beyond Rubies Seeking Sabbath Scripture and a Snapshot IHeart Verse Welcome Heart Kingdom Bloggers Outdoorsy Mommy Anchored Truth Tuesdays IHeart Verse InstaEncouragements

Comments

  1. Thank God for the many gifts He so graciously and bountifully bestows upon us, as His children! I feel bad for the family who stole all of those things, in one way, but in another, it really makes me upset that because of people like them, prices are raised for the rest of us who try to live honest lives. God saw what they did, and they will be held accountable. I don't know how people live like this, and I can't understand why the man was taking pictures of the shirts? Was he planning to sell them online or something? I'm glad we only have to answer for ourselves and what we do! I hope all is well with you and your sweet family and am so thankful your daughter and son-in-law are going to soon be settled in their own place, although I know you will miss them so much! I hope they will be near enough for you to see that precious grandbaby often!! Sending you much love and hugs!!

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    1. Cheryl, Amen! I know. It really was upsetting to witness. My husband and I went into the same store the next night (our cold weather nightly ritual of "walking the mall" lol.) and we looked around to see if there were security cameras and there was right over the vestibule where they walked out the door. I'm not sure how they thought they'd get away with it.

      My daughter and son-in-law are slowly getting settled in. I've been helping out a lot watching Lexi because it is near impossible to unpack with a VERY active toddler. lol. This Mimi doesn't mind one iota! :-) They only live 4 minute away. I am so thankful to the Lord how He made this all happen.

      That's not to say this hasn't been the most painful time in my life. There is such a void in our home now. It literally echos. The silence is deafening. I am literally grieving. It is effecting me physically and of course emotionally. I know this too shall pass. I read a quote on a blog post last week that said, "The only way to get past pain is to walk through it." So I am allowing myself to embrace the tears, which mostly fall at night and first thing in the morning, but am staying active during the day and still get to see my precious granddaughter and daughter a lot!

      Thank you for your kind thoughts sweet friend.

      Blessings,

      Delete
  2. Free is always wonderful when it is a gift that is given without expectation, isn't it! So wonderful that your daughter's family have been helped out so generously as they begin life in their new home! And I have to say it is always a joy to try out samples before purchasing, then you know if you will like it or not! Craziness about those people and the merchandise in their car, so sad. Wonderful post today (I am your neighbor visiting you from Strangers & Pilgrims). Have a blessed day!

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    1. Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts here in the comment section. I appreciate it! :-)

      Blessings,

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  3. I love free stuff too! Especially items of eternal worth ;)

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  4. Love this list of all God's freebies. I think I'll use your husband's phrase in that case. ;) God is awesome!

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    1. I like that! "God's freebies". :-)

      :-D

      Indeed He is!

      Thanks for stopping by. :-)

      Delete
  5. Oh my, you've made me hungry for crackers and cheese! :-) Seriously, thank you for these beautiful words pointing us to the free gift of Jesus' sacrifice for us. I'm so thankful for the verse from 2 Corinthians, as it is a precious reminder for me to keep looking up in hope for those that I am praying for to find HIS salvation. I'm glad we're neighbors again over at #TeaAndWordTuesday! --Blessings to you!

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    1. Bettie, Lol! I love it!

      You are very welcome! Thank you for sharing your heart here.

      I'm glad we were too!

      Blessings,

      Delete
  6. Hahaha Karen, I love your husbands sense of humor and his phrase, "if it's free, it's for me." when it comes to food samples, my husband and kids would definitely agree. I am forever grateful and celebrate all the free things that we receive as a result of Jesus' sacrifice for us. Got to be your neighbor at #TeaAndWordTuesday

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    1. Debbie, :-)

      Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts here. I appreciate it!

      Glad you were my neighbor! :-)

      Delete
  7. Hi Karen, I'm just popping over from my blog since you left at comment :) I see that you are in New England - so am I! I live in central/eastern Connecticut. Are you nearby? Just fun to hear from someone who may live in my area!

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    1. Karen, I'm so glad you did!

      Well, actually I guess we are technically. I live in Rhode Island. :-) Howdy neighbor!

      Blessings,

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  8. What a great post, Karen. Thank you for reminding me things I so often forget!

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    1. Colleen, Thank you so much!

      You are very welcome! :-)

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  9. Aren't we thankful for God's economy! His blessings never run out. As helpful and blessed as it was for folks to give your daughter furniture, I'm betting the givers were equally blessed. "God's freebies" (love th as t,too) of salvation, sanctification, and fruit of the spirit are the best deal around!

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    1. Alice, Indeed!

      That is so true. There are always blessings to giving.

      Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts here. I appreciate it!

      Delete
  10. Well, it is true. All the best things are free. :)
    Wonderful article.

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  11. These beautiful gifts of God's remind me to be so very grateful every single day, each moment for these gifts, for my breath, and His love. What a fine list and Scriptures to sidle up to each one.

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    1. Linda, Thanks so much for your kind words and for joining in on the conversation. :-)

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  12. Thank you for sharing your words with us this week, Karen. Your husband sounds a lot like my mother in law LOL. I hope your daughter has a smooth transition and settles in nicely. We haven't had a couch in almost a year because we saving up for one but we have been so blessed with kids clothes and shoes and such, and God always knows right when we need them. He keeps me in awe!

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    1. Meg, You are very welcome!

      Awe, thank you for your kind thoughts for my daughter and her family. They are pretty much settled in. I can't believe it's been a whole week already!

      Indeed He does! He never ceases to amaze us!

      Thanks for stopping by.

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  13. I'm so thankful for the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ!

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  14. I am very thankful for the gift of God's love, mercy and grace and for the salvation He so freely offers that cost Him so much. Blessings to you, Karen! I'm your neighbor at #GiveMeGrace.

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  15. God's generosity blows me away. He gives so much, holding nothing back. His ultimate gift is Himself, and it's one I could never deserve or earn on my own merit. Thank you for using your platform to point us toward His grace, and for linking with us at Grace & Truth. It's my honor to feature your post at A Divine Encounter on Friday.

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    1. Jennifer, Amen!

      Thank you so much for your kind words, and I appreciate very much the feature!

      Blessings,

      Delete
  16. I love this: "If it's free, it's for me!" Thanks for sharing this at Booknificent Thursday last week on Mommynificent.com!
    Tina

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