The Price of Ownership
As I sat in a cozy booth at Shari’s, sipping my coffee and chatting with a friend, a sudden commotion outside caught my attention. A car alarm blared incessantly, and I wondered why the owner was taking so long to turn it off. But then, I saw the “owner” – a thief – making a swift getaway with stolen goods. The scene was chaotic, with onlookers watching in shock as the thief sped away.
A Different Kind of Theft
The word “burglary” has a certain stigma to it – it’s a violation of someone’s property, a breach of trust. Yet, as I reflected on this incident, I was struck by a profound realization: I, too, was guilty of a similar crime. Not of stealing material possessions, but of stealing something far more valuable – my life.
A Life Bought with a Price
The Bible reminds us that we are not our own; we were bought at a price (1 Corinthians 6:20). This truth is both liberating and convicting. If my life belongs to God, then every decision I make should be filtered through His ownership. But how often do I take control, making choices without considering His will?
Grand Theft: A Life Stolen from God
This kind of theft is not just a minor infraction; it’s a grand larceny. We’ve been bought with a price far greater than we could ever pay, and yet we still try to take back control. We think we know better, that our way is superior to God’s. But this kind of thinking leads to a life of secrecy and shame, lived in the shadows rather than in the light of God’s ownership.
True Freedom in Surrender
The irony is that belonging to God is the key to true freedom. He is a careful Guardian, who desires to guide us into a life of purpose and meaning. When we surrender our lives to Him, we find freedom from the burden of self-determination. We no longer need to take what belongs to Him into our own hands, trying to control every aspect of our lives.
A Life of Surrender
So, what kind of life would we live if we remembered that our lives are not our own? Would we live with reckless abandon, trusting in God’s sovereignty? Or would we continue to steal from Him, trying to control every aspect of our lives? The choice is ours. Will we choose to live a life that is truly His, or one that is stolen from Him?
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