Central United Methodist Church

Lewis Street at Beverley
Staunton VA
Founded in 1797
Rev. David D. Reed, Pastor
 
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August 2005

Family Plan

There is no escaping the bold advertising that has hit the American landscape. Television commercials, radio spots, newspaper ads and dealership banners all herald the latest in a great bargain for the consumer. The manufacturers of most American-made vehicles are offering to each of us the very same deal they offer to their employees. I can only guess that they like their employees and have special arrangements so that they can get their cars or trucks at a much lower price than what you or I have been able to arrange. Someone told me that this special offer can save the buyer thousands of dollars. Well, let me go on record as agreeing that when purchasing anything, get as good a deal as you can! But it has grabbed my attention that for now we, the consumers, are given the same favored pricing as the manufacturer’s employees.

Now, I am extremely happy to announce that God, too, has a special plan! This plan offers to each of us the distinct, unique privilege of becoming a part of God’s family. Each of us is God’s unique creation but this offer extends to us the invitation to be a daughter or son to God. By God’s invitation and preauthorized approval we may claim ourselves as the children of God! Please note that this is more than a claim of status, it is a claim of relationship that is as real as that of any other family relationship. As a member of the family of God we are heirs of and partners with God’s cosmic mission. Since God is our parent, we are the inheritors of all that has been or will be created. Because of our relationship as children, we share the richness of unconditional love, the hope for the harmonious future God has promised and a confidence that, come what may, God will not forsake us. All of this is ours because we are family!

While I like the opportunity to be considered an employee, I am overjoyed by the invitation to be in God’s family. If I take advantage of the employee plan I get a vehicle; if I participate in God’s family plan I get a full life now and eternity in our family home. The two plans are not mutually exclusive but then again, it is easy to see God’s plan is unbeatable.

Grace and Peace,

David

 

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