Guest Post by my daughter, Courtney Sutton

The greatest gift of all is available to every human being.  It is something of no monetary value, and can only be given one way.  To turn it away is one of the most foolish things anyone could ever do.

A Christian is so much more than just receiving salvation. Jesus’ purpose was fulfilled when He died on that cross; but his life He lived on this earth before was one that we should be living now. His love saved our souls and our will is now to live a righteous life just like Him. To grasp what this means is so important; because I don’t know many people that died on a cross so that I could have everlasting life, even though I don’t deserve it. I actually only know One.  Now I live for Him. This Holy Man who did absolutely nothing wrong died in my place. MY place. What have I done to deserve this? Nothing. And that’s just it, I have done nothing to be able to receive this gift but I still will. ALL God asks for is my life. That doesn’t seem like much to me, seeing as He gave it to me. I want nothing more now than to live for Christ and to let His love overtake me. To let Him speak through me and shine through me. To let Him use me any way He wants to.

 

There is nothing greater than living your life for Christ. He brings us hope and peace. He gives us joy when we need it most. Even in our lowest of lows, He opens doors and shows us ways out. He laid down his life for me and all I can do is praise Him. He is everything we need. There is nothing greater than His love. Time and time again I have let Him down, yet he still reigns. He’s still on his throne. I owed a debt I could not pay and He paid a debt He did not owe.

There is no more time to waste. Our time is now. You either live for Him or you don’t. It’s not a matter of if I’m a “Christian” or not. It’s a matter of if I’m a CHRIST FOLLOWER or not. In 1 Corinthians chapter 9, Paul reminds us that we’re running a race. And at the end of this race is everlasting life so we must run with a purpose because our prize will NEVER fade away. This life is His and always has been, so we must start giving it back to Him.

 

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 “Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.”