Tag: free

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Free admission

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Luke 18.

“Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it” (Luke 18:17).

With grandchildren in tow, we pay a lot of attention to admission prices. Free admission for some of them varies from place to place. Sometimes we pay nothing for two and under. Other places there no fee until you turn five. Once place didn’t charge for twelve and under.

One of the great things about the kingdom of God is that admission is free. Well, at least for us. Jesus paid for our ticket with his life, sacrificed on the cross. Kingdom entrance is free for the children of God!

That’s an easy truth to forget. As we get older, we expect more from ourselves and others. We beat ourselves up for failure and congratulate ourselves for success. We look down on those who don’t have it together, and aspire to be like those who have accomplished much. As we age, we begin to think and act like there’s a buy-in.

There’s not. (If there was, you couldn’t afford it anyway.) If he’s your Father, then you’re his child. Come on in. It’s free.

Posted in Grace, Ministry

The fifth one is on us

Posted on by William Douthwaite

A few weeks ago, I met someone who didn’t attend church much, but came to worship with us one Sunday. I’m not sure how, but we got talking about the punch cards he carried in his wallet from various places he liked to eat. You know, where you get it punched every time you come in, and then when you have a certain number of punches, you get something free.

For some strange reason, I thought, “I can do that.” I made him a “frequent worshiper” card for our church. “Attend four worship services, and the fifth mass is on us!” I laminated it, punched out one of the church logos for the Sunday he was here, and sent it with the usual letter thanking him for worshiping with us. I haven’t seen or heard from him yet, but I hope he found it as amusing as I did.

Afterwards I got to thinking, “What would it mean for worship to be ‘on us’?” I mean, we give freely because of all God has freely given us. I guess it could mean you didn’t have to put an offering in that week. Or maybe you could get something from the plate when it was passed around. Although I wouldn’t recommend it. Our ushers are pretty tough.

Actually, this isn’t such a unique idea. We have churches in our community that have given out gas and coffee gift cards to first time visitors. Some will take you out for ice cream if you bring a friend to youth group. My idea was meant to be taken lightly, but hopefully it will help strengthen the connection with this individual.