{With Thanksgiving}

i'm being {hammered} right now with Gospel Truth.

our pastor has been beating it into our heads.

i'm reading a great book about it.

and the other day, my brother in law wrote a post about it.

the truth of the {Cross} is never something that i feel like i can forget.

but it can become familiar to me. and that makes me sick.

the reality of Jesus dying on the Cross is {never} something that i want to be just {familiar} or {comfortable} with.

i want to {crumble} at the idea of Jesus dying.

because of me.

because i should be the one dead.

and i'm not.

i tried this morning, to think about this in the same way that anthony did.

(click here to read his blog post)

the idea of, choosing to let remington, my precious, valued, {only} son die for the sake of my {enemies} lives, and not only letting him die, but {abandoning} him at the time of his death is just not something i can say i would be willing/able to do.

i heard a floating internet story (fictional, obviously) once along time ago about this outbreak of some sort of disease or sickness and everyone in the world was dropping like flies. then, they found that this one little boy could give of his own blood (somehow his blood held the cure) and save everyone's lives.

so his parents had the choice to selfishly keep their own son alive and everyone else would die, or to sacrifice their son to save all of mankind.

in the story they choose to sacrifice their son.

valiant. loving. unselfish these parents were.

but.

can you imagine if you had to sacrifice your {only son} for the sake of every murderer.

child molester.

rapist.

thief.

adulterer.

your son, who is {perfect}. he never had to have a spank. he never refused to eat his veggies.

he never back talked, or hit his sister.

can you imagine if you had to sacrifice this perfect son for the one person on earth who hated you the most?

this, this is what God did for us.

for me.

for you.

i. cannot. get. my. brain. around. this.

i wouldn't sacrifice remi for

my next door neighbor who i get along fine with, let alone my worst ememy.

not. a. chance.

but this is what God did for me.

and i {crumble} at the thought.

as i should.

but also, i {rejoice}.

because of this mighty sacrifice, i will not spend eternity in hell.

i'm always reminding delaney, "you need to love others, more then you love yourself."

Jesus chose to love me more then He loved Himself.

and because of this, i {rejoice}.

Psalm 95:1-7

Oh, Come, let us sing to the LORD;

let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;

let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

For the LORD is a great God,

and a great King above all gods.

In his hands are the depths of the earth;

the heights of the mountains are his also.

The sea is his, for he made it,

and his hands formed the dry land.

Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!

For he is our God,

and we are the people of his pasture,

and the sheep of his hand.

i am the sheep of His hand.

i come to Him with thanksgiving.

i praise Him, for the LORD is a great God.