Sermon Illustrations on Abundant Life

If You Knew That Your Days Were Numbered

Facing terminal illness can inspire living each day fully as a God-given gift.

A man in Iowa discovered that he had terminal cancer. For weeks he moped around the house avoiding loved ones, inwardly cursing God and wondering why this tragedy had happened to him. Then one day he made a decision: "I am not dead yet, and I am going to live each day to its fullest the rest of my life." Sometime later, when he was interviewed, he said he had experienced a more abundant life in the weeks after that decision than during his prior 42 years-colors seemed more vivid, the laughter of his children more bright and precious. One suggestion he gave to help others with terminal illness was, "Consider each day as a gift from God; enjoy it fully."

Dissatisfaction, Christian

Christian dissatisfaction arises from longing for higher spiritual heights and greater bliss.

In the case of the Christian, dissatisfaction as to present attainments arises, not from the circumstance that the very objects of his pursuit, like the pleasures of the world, are in themselves unsatisfactory (so that, when they are realized, they ill repay the strife and toil by which they were obtained), but that, the greater his happiness, the greater becomes his capacity for bliss. He lives above the world, and breathes the atmosphere of heaven; but, the higher he ascends, the more he regrets that he dwells so far below. He has left beneath his feet the mists of the valley, and the clouds, in their courses; peradventure, he has even gained a region where those mists and clouds seldom shut out the sunshine: but he beholds beyond him and above him heights over heights, and these he longs and intends to scale. And, while he regards his present footing but as the table-land where he may recruit himself a little for nobler enterprise, he knows, that, should he reach the highest point of all, he will but stand on the utmost boundary of an earthly planet, while worlds upon worlds will revolve beyond him in the boundlessness of space and the plenitude of celestial glory. D. E. Ford.

Growth in grace

Christians should enjoy abundant grace and fellowship, not just mere survival in faith.

The other day there landed on the shores of France a boatful of people sodden with rain and salt-water; they had lost all their luggage, and had nothing but what they stood upright in: they were glad, indeed, to have been saved from a wreck. It was well that they landed at all; but when it is my lot again to cross to France, I trust I shall put my foot on shore in a better plight than that. I would prefer to cross the Channel in comfort, and land with pleasure. There is all this difference between being "saved so as by fire," and having "an abundant entrance ministered unto us" into the kingdom. Let us enjoy heaven on the road to heaven. Why not? Instead of being fished up as castaways, stranded upon the shores of mercy, let us take our passage on board the well-appointed liner of Free Grace; let us, if possible, go in the first cabin, enjoying all the comforts of the way, and having fellowship with the great Captain of our Salvation. Why should we think it enough to be mere stowaways? I would stir you up, dear friends, at this time, to aspire after the best gifts. Grow in grace. Increase in love to God, and in nearness of access to Him, that the Lord may at this good hour stoop down to us as our great Friend, and then lift us up to be known as His friends.

Sunshine

A worldly life may have more show, but the Christian life has more shine.

The sunshine of Persia forms one of its greatest attractions. The natives are very much alarmed when an eclipse of the sun takes place, as they are afraid they are going to lose their benefactor. A Persian gentleman once visited England, and on his return to his native country was questioned by his friends as to which was the better land to live in. His reply was to the effect that in England the houses were grander, the scenery more beautiful, but that there was no sunshine.

A worldly life may have more show, but the Christian life has more shine. (Text.)

Sucking the Marrow Out of Life

Luke 20:38

From Henry David Thoreau’s book WALDEN, written in 1845:

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, to discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not a life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience, and be able to give a true account of it in my next excursion.

For most men, it appears to me, are in a strange uncertainty about it, whether it is of the devil or of God, and have somewhat hastily concluded that it is the chief end of man here to “glorify God and enjoy him forever.”

Abundant Life

Luke 20:38

A university professor tells of being invited to speak at a military base one December and there meeting an unforgettable soldier named Ralph. Ralph had been sent to meet him at the airport, and after they had introduced themselves, they headed toward the baggage claim.

As they walked down the concourse, Ralph kept disappearing. Once to help an older woman whose suitcase had fallen open. Once to lift two toddlers up to where they could see Santa Claus. And again to give directions to someone who was lost. Each time he came back with a big smile on his face.

“Where did you learn to do that?” the professor asked.

“Do what?” Ralph said

“Where did you learn to live like that?”

“Oh,” Ralph said, “during the war, I guess.” Then he told the professor about his tour of duty in Viet Nam, about how it was his job to clear mine fields, and how he watched his friends blow up before his eyes, one after another.

“I learned to live between steps,” he said. “I never knew whether the next one would be my last, so I learned to get everything I could out of the moment between when I picked up my foot and when I put it down again. Every step I took was a whole new world, and I guess I’ve just been that way ever since.”

The abundance of our lives is not determined by how long we live, but how well we live it. Christ makes abundant life possible if we choose to live it now.

God Doesn't Offer Quick Fixes, Women's Bible Study Leader Says

Luke 4:18

God doesn't offer drive-through windows where Christians can order up Spirit-filled lives and quick answers to pressing problems, said a popular women's Bible study leader.

"In our human nature, we always want the quick fix. Give me something in five minutes or we don't want to be fixed at all," said Beth Moore, a teacher and author of five in-depth Bible studies, a 10-week prayer journal and a collection of poetry and vignettes, all published by LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention.

"If people really want the freedom that is available to them through Christ, they are going to have to walk with God, day in and day out, for all their lives," Moore said.

Moore's latest message to women is about casting off strongholds or behaviors that interfere with living an "abundant life," which she describes as "a life with a whole lot of God."

"A stronghold is anything in your life that has a strong hold on your life," she said. "It is something you realize is mastering you. You are out of control and mastered by something other than Christ. Christ masters us to set us free. Anything else masters us to keep us bound."

For Moore, fear and distrust were the behaviors that held her captive and kept her from leading an abundant life in Christ.

"Without getting too specific, I think I've been very open that I was the victim of some abuses as a child. So I came with all sorts of strongholds in my life."

"When there is a person that your family trusted, and they become untrustworthy and you're just a small child, then you grow up with a stronghold of mistrust." Moore said most adults grow up with childhood scars that manifest themselves in unhealthy external behaviors.

"Any kind of compulsive behavior, any kind of addictive behavior represents an internal need for control," she said. "Anything that continues to make us feel shame or like we are less than we are in Christ, anything that steals our dignity in Christ is a stronghold that we need to be free of."

Moore said people who "overdo or under-do anything" need to break free from their strongholds and experience freedom through Christ.

"I don't like to get too specific about the strongholds in my study because I want women to ask themselves what theirs are. What is keeping you from just enjoying your life in Christ?"

Paradoxically, Moore said, Christians believe that living a Spirit-filled life is the exception, rather than the rule. "It is our heritage to live a life that glorifies God, to enjoy his presence, to find satisfaction in him and to have a real prayer life. Really, the off times of our insecurities should be the exception. "My study teaches that if you are not living the Spirit-filled, effective life, you've got something somewhere that is a hindrance to you. Now what is it?"

Moore, whose mother recently died after a lengthy illness, said she wants to be clear that enjoying life and enjoying life in Christ are different. "There are periods in our lives that aren't enjoyable at all, but we can learn to enjoy the presence of Christ in our lives even during a very unenjoyable period of time."

"The Apostle Paul says, 'Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.' Breaking Free is about learning how to allow the spirit of Christ to really take over your life. I have to begin every day of my life saying, 'Lord, I don't want to just live for you. I want you to live through me.'"

Moore said prayer and studying the Bible are rudimentary to discovering freedom in Christ. Christians have "got to have a praying life and they've got to have a relationship with God through his Word. I'm not talking about perfection, but I'm talking about being in constant pursuit of God," she said.

Moore counters the idea that pursuing God constantly and finding freedom from strongholds means forfeiting a normal life. "I'm not saying the working woman can't be free because she can't sit and read God's Word every minute of every day. It's a mentality of feeling God's presence. I hope and pray there is some time spent in God's Word every day, but that doesn't mean the person never gets up from her prayer time and lives a normal life."

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Fortune Cookies and Rich Benefactors

Mark 12:33

Fortune Cookies are not usually a great source of wisdom. But a friend recently found one with a particularly interesting fortune. It read, “You have richness in your soul.”

In our materialistic age we are quite familiar with material wealth, but we are not as familiar with wealth of the soul. Wealth of the soul is much to be preferred. Material wealth affords external comforts but wealth of the soul affords internal richness. A deep happiness, an overflowing joy, a sure peace, a true love, these are the fruits of a rich soul. Don't we all long for them? Don't we all long for something to tell us that we have richness in our soul?

As a follower of Jesus Christ, I believe that He was a man of great richness of soul, and I believe that He instructs us in how to know His richness in our own souls. This is what He was talking about when He said that He came to bring life and bring it more abundantly. (John 10:10) Or when He said that the greatest way to live life is to love God with all our hearts, all our soul, all our mind, and all our strength, and also to love our neighbor as ourselves. (Mark 12:33) To live a life so permeated with love, that is a rich way to live.

Many think following Christ is primarily a path of sacrifice and self-abnegation, and so miss an enormous truth: not following Christ is the most costly choice, not just for the hereafter but for the here and now. Dallas Willard captures this point well as he discusses following Christ, or being a disciple of Christ as he puts it:

[T]he cost of nondiscipleship is far greater - even when this

life alone is considered - than the price paid to walk with

Jesus. Nondiscipleship costs abiding peace, a life penetrated

throughout by love, faith that sees everything in the light of

God's overriding governance for good, hopefulness that stands

firm in the most discouraging of circumstances, power to do what

is right and withstand the forces of evil. In short, it costs

that abundance of life that Jesus said he came to bring. [3]

Christ is not a killjoy. He lived the ultimate human life, and following Him involves no less of an adventure, and no less of a quality of life.

His soul is the richest of all. Follow Him, and He will become your benefactor.

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3. Dallas Willard, Spirit of the Disciplines, quoted from Devotional

Classics, ed. Richard Foster and James Bryan Smith (San Francisco,

Harper Collins, 1993) p.16.

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #6274]

(untitled)

John 10:10

ABUNDANT LIFE

A little boy who lived far out in the country in the late 1800s had reached the age of twelve and had never in all his life seen a circus. You can imagine his excitement, when one day a poster went up at school announcing that on the next Saturday a traveling circus was coming to the nearby town.

He ran home with the glad news and the question, "Daddy, can I go?" Although the family was poor, the father sensed how important this was to the lad. "If you do your Saturday chores ahead of time," he said, "I'll see to it that you have the money to go."'

Come Saturday morning, the chores were done and the little boy stood by the breakfast table, dressed in his Sunday best. His father reached down into the pocket of his overalls and pulled out a dollar bill-the most money the little boy had possessed at one time in all his life. The father cautioned him to be careful and then sent him on his way to town.

The boy was so excited, his feet hardly seemed to touch the ground all the way. As he neared the outskirts of the village, he noticed people lining the streets, and he worked his way through the crowd until he could see what was happening. Lo and behold, it was the approaching spectacle of a circus parade! The parade was the grandest thing this lad had ever seen. Caged animals snarled as they passed, bands beat their rhythms and sounded shining horns, midgets performed acrobatics while flags and ribbons swirled overhead. Finally, after everything had passed where he was standing, the traditional circus clown, with floppy shoes, baggy pants, and a brightly painted face, brought up the rear. As the clown passed by, the little boy reached into his pocket and took out that precious dollar bill. Handing the money to the clown, the boy turned around and went home. What had happened? The boy thought he had seen the circus when he had only seen the parade!

Are you experiencing all that God has for you? The Christian life is a marvelous adventure, an exciting journey. Many people-including Christians-seem to be content to float in a sea of mediocrity, settling for second best. Do you want the abundant life that Jesus promised? Do you want to live life to its fullest? Then aim higher. Don't set your sights too low. Determine to become all that God created you to be. Give yourself to Christ, follow Him completely, and allow the Holy Spirit to work in you and through you. You ain't seen nothin' yet!

Hot Illustrations For Youth Talks

Wayne Rice, Zonderzan, pp. 56-57.

New Age Movement Is What Christianity Should Be About

John 10:10

After Christianity Today ran an article which criticized the New Age movement, Dr. John Chrisci wrote a letter to them. He said the New Age religion is what Christianity should be all about, but isn't. The New Age movement is forward-looking, positive and uplifting. Christians, on the other hand, tend to focus on negatives, grovel in sin and guilt, and look back to the past.

Dr. Chrisci concluded:

The put-down has gone far enough. People are hungry for Christ's

more abundant life. We have brought the New Age movement on ourselves.

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Surprising Effervescence

John 7:37

My needs are pretty simple when I'm speaking for some event. Just get me a bottle of fresh water, and I'll be able to keep going like the Energizer Bunny. Recently, I realized that I was heading into a speaking session without my trusty bottle of water. Someone directed me to a hospitality room the host had set up for those on the program. I bypassed all the goodies and reached for the first bottle of water I saw. As I sat on the front row of the auditorium, awaiting my time to go up to the platform, I mindlessly twisted open the cap on the bottle so I could get a swig. Well, much to my surprise and chagrin, the contents immediately began erupting out of the bottle! I hadn't read the label, and I didn't know what was inside until I opened it. It was sparkling water, and it was sparkling all over me!

Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about “Surprising Effervescence.”

Effervescence -- something sparkling and alive. Apparently, that's what is supposed to characterize the life and attitude of someone who belongs to Jesus Christ. After all, He said in John 7:37-39, our word for today from the Word of God, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me ... streams of living water will flow from within him. By this He meant the Spirit.”

That's a great picture. Those who have gone to Jesus to have the thirst in their soul finally quenched are now to be conduits for the living water of the Holy Spirit to pour over thirsty lives around them. And, believe me, you're surrounded by some thirsty lives -- people you live with, people you work with, people you recreate with, people you go to school with. When situations arise that show what's inside you -- that, in essence, take the cap off your bottle -- they're supposed to see something inviting, something exciting pouring out.

Peter underscores one characteristic in a Jesus-follower that will cause the people around them to want what they have. In 1 Peter 3:15, he says: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” That's “hope” as in a positive outlook on life, a joyful attitude, a sense of peace under pressure, a buoyancy in the midst of trouble, a sense of ultimate confidence about the future. Now, honestly, is that what you're known for by the people who are with you all the time?

Sadly, Christians have too long been associated with being negative, narrow, condemning, and even miserable. You've got to be the living proof of that “life more abundantly” that is the real result of belonging to Jesus. Maybe you've let the sparkling water of the Holy Spirit go flat inside you. You're known more for complaining and criticizing, for always seeing what's wrong, for being grumpy and gripy. What kind of impression does that give them of Jesus?

If you're wondering why your friends or family members or coworkers don't seem interested in Jesus, consider this: could it be because you've been more a taste of bitter water than sparkling water? After all, the word “enthusiasm” literally comes from the words “en Theos” -- in God. The “in God” folks ought to be more enthusiastic about life than anybody!

At a time when David had lost everything he held dear and others around him were succumbing to bitterness and blaming, the Bible says, “But David found strength in the Lord his God.” Maybe that's what you need to do today -- go deep into your Lord's bottomless well to bring up some fresh water, some sparkling water for your parched soul. You need it. The people around you need it. When what's inside you comes out, let it be the joy of Jesus that is a magnet for thirsty people.

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Like Good Secrets

John 10:10

In THE SCREWTAPE LETTERS, C. S. Lewis creates a scene that reveals a startling truth. The senior devil is training a junior devil to intercept a man who is on the verge of becoming a Christian. The young devil is to deter the man from God, who they call “the Enemy.” The junior devil tries his best to distract his subject, but after a few weeks returns unsuccessful. The frustrated young devil cannot explain what went wrong, but notes that the man did two simple things each day. Every morning he would get up and go for a long walk, thoroughly enjoying the air, the scenery, and all in all, the walk itself. Then every evening, at then end of his day, the man would curl up with a good book, thoroughly delighting in that book, the reading, the time itself. To this, the senior devil notes sharply: “This is where you went horribly wrong! You should have put it into his mind that he had to get up in the morning and take that walk for THE SAKE OF EXERCISE. It would have become drudgery to him. And you should have gotten him to read the book so that he could quote it to somebody else. It would have become equally uninspiring. You allowed him to enjoy such pure pleasure that the Enemy’s voice became more audible within those experiences. That is where you went wrong.”

What Lewis calls “pure pleasure” is something that often eludes us to our own misfortune. Enjoying the current moment for what it is and for all that it offers brings us within the reach of God’s voice. The concluding words of the apostle Paul to the Philippian Church speak of a similar mystery. Writes Paul, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable -- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy -- think about such things... And the God of peace will be with you” (Philippians 4:8-9). In this there is a deep and wonderful truth. As King David sings in many of the psalms, God is always present; He is omnipresent. But there are times we are given the mind to truly seize it. Divine presence is revealed unmistakably at certain moments in our lives. Particular experiences of truth, of beauty, of excellence whisper of the mystery that God is intimately with us.

Now consider an explanation in stark contrast to the words of Lewis and Paul. Woody Allen once confessed in an interview, “It’s hard for me to enjoy anything because I’m aware how transient things are... Yes, there are times when you think, ‘My God, life is sweet, it’s nice,’ and thoughts of mortality are in abeyance. You know, watching the Marx Brothers or a Knicks game or listening to great jazz, you get a great feeling of ecstasy... But then it passes, and the dark reality of life starts to creep back in.”(1)

We find in this life undeniable glimpses of sweetness, glimpses and feelings that tell us there is something wonderful about life itself, something profound. Sometimes these moments come crashing like intoxicating waves over us, other times like good secrets that have crept up on us. But how will you interpret these moments? If life itself is meaningless, quite logically, as Allen concluded, such moments are merely trivial and fleeting interruptions of that dark reality. And sadly, even the sweetest moments then become something like cruel tricks played on us by life itself.

Truly, there is much that is bad and seemingly meaningless in the universe, and certainly, the world is full of men who point this out as the reason for unbelief. But to me the Christian answer is far better. The Christian does not deny that there is much that is bad, but acknowledges that this is a good world that has gone terribly wrong. It is a good world gone wrong, with a memory of what should have been. In this, our moments of wonder are exactly that, moments of wonder, memories of what SHOULD HAVE BEEN, visions of God’s presence among us, and longings for what will one day be so. This is the startling mystery Christ voices loudly: THIS ABUNDANT LIFE OF WHICH YOU HAVE THUS FAR ONLY SEEN GLIMPSES, WILL INDEED, BE FULLY YOURS.(2)

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1. From “Lowdown Fulfills a Sweet Dream for Allen,” by Fred Kaplan (BOSTON GLOBE) printed in THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 28 JANUARY 2000, Q4.

2. See Revelation 21:3-6

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Why Do You Care?

John 10:10

I recently turned 65 and had to choose a new primary care physician for my Medicare program.

After two visits and exhaustive lab tests, he said I was doing “fairly well” for my age.

A little concerned about that comment, I couldn’t resist asking him, “Do you think I will live to be 80?”

He asked: Do you smoke tobacco or drink alcoholic beverages?”

“Oh no,” I replied. “I don’t do drugs, either.”

“Do you have many friends and entertain frequently?”

“I said, “No, I usually stay home and keep to myself.”

“Do you eat rib-eye steaks and barbecued ribs?”

I said, “No, my other doctor said that all red meat is unhealthy!”

“Do you spend a lot of time in the sun, like playing golf, sailing, hiking, or bicycling?”

“No, I don’t,” I said.

“Do you gamble, drive fast cars, have a lot of girl friends?

“No,” I said. “I don’t do any of those things.”

He looked at me and said, “Then why do you care?”

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Source: Monday Fodder by Dave Aufrance, Missionary in Hongkong, http://www.fishermansnet.com/monday-fodder/

Fully Human, Fully Alive: Embracing Your Life As God Intends

John 10:10

Is it possible to be so heavenly minded we’re no earthly good? An important new book describes how we often misunderstand eternal life. I’ll tell you about it.

Several years ago, my friend Pastor Matt Heard chanced upon a small painting by Russian painter Nikolai Yaroshenko. In it, five prisoners press against a small barred window to catch a glimpse of pigeons feeding just outside their prison railcar. Their faces reveal wonder, delight and appreciation for the small grace of those birds. A sixth prisoner stands in the shadows in the background, turned away from the joyous scene and staring out of a barred window on the other side.

The painting is entitled “There is Life Everywhere,” and it got Matt thinking about how often he saw Christians excited about the idea of heaven, but struggling through an earthly existence they were more interested in bypassing or surviving than enjoying. He began to wonder if life for many believers was a bit like that of the sixth man in the boxcar, something that imprisons us and from which only heaven can set us free.

The problem for Matt was that this doesn’t mesh with what the gospels, especially John 10:10, says. Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.”

This fullness of life, or what Matt calls in the title of his new book “Life with a Capital L,” is the “capacity Jesus gives me to fully embrace my humanity and experience the privilege of being human.” Matt realized that Jesus didn’t come to save us from human life but to restore us to it as the life God always intended for us: to be fully human and fully alive.

According to Matt, Christians too often act as if the physical aspects of our lives are in opposition to our spiritual lives and are even an evil to escape. But nothing could be further from the truth.

He writes, “To be fully human, I must engage with life in both a physical and spiritual way, and not just as two parallel, unrelated compartments. ... Religion tends to idolize the spiritual and secularism tends to idolize the physical. But the boundary between sacred and secular is fabricated. To be fully human is to take down that boundary and live our days in an integrated way on both a physical and spiritual level.”

In the Incarnation, Jesus perfectly married the human and divine aspects of humanity. And as redeemed children of God, Jesus calls us to enjoy this same integrated life. Now the question is, how do we experience this?

Well, Matt believes the only path forward is found by paying attention to our desires. He writes that “my longing is central to who I am as a human being.” Now of course, most of us experience our longings in a fallen sense, misdirected. Like the Samaritan woman at the well, we drink and drink and are never satisfied, because we don’t realize that Christ is offering living water that alone can fully quench our thirst. That’s the water Christ offers, and it leads us to be what God created us to be.

Now I want to be clear, “Life with a Capital L” is not another version of “your best life now,” not even close. It is, however, a much deeper engagement with Scripture and faith offering a practical theology of humanity that many of us have yet to experience. As I wrote in my endorsement, and Matt has confirmed from those who’ve read the book, those who encounter this truth will find themselves asking, “What if? What if this is actually true?”

Understanding demands we take the idea of grace seriously. And to do that, we must contend with the reality and gravity of our sin. But when we do, it illuminates what the redeemed life can look like. Consider this my personal invitation to embrace your God-given humanity and to come home to the vibrant life a bit earlier than you had planned.

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Does Salvation Have Anything To Do With Who We Are?

John 10

Can we believe that the essence of Christian faith and salvation covers nothing but death and after? Can we believe that being saved really has nothing whatever to do with the kinds of persons we are?

Most Americans believe in God, indeed say they have made a commitment to Jesus Christ. More than a third claim a new birth experience. These figures are shocking when thoughtfully compared to statistics on the same group for unethical behavior, crime, mental distress and disorder, family failures, addictions, financial misdealings, and the like.

Could such a combination of profession and failure really be the “life and life abundantly” that Jesus said he came to give? Or have we somehow developed an understanding of “commitment to Jesus Christ” that does not break through to his living presence in our lives?

Does Salvation Have Anything To Do With Who We Are?

John 10

Can we believe that the essence of Christian faith and salvation covers nothing but death and after? Can we believe that being saved really has nothing whatever to do with the kinds of persons we are?

Most Americans believe in God, indeed say they have made a commitment to Jesus Christ. More than a third claim a new birth experience. These figures are shocking when thoughtfully compared to statistics on the same group for unethical behavior, crime, mental distress and disorder, family failures, addictions, financial misdealings, and the like.

Could such a combination of profession and failure really be the “life and life abundantly” that Jesus said he came to give? Or have we somehow developed an understanding of “commitment to Jesus Christ” that does not break through to his living presence in our lives?

Giving

Giving is essential to life, like the sun's generous pouring of light on all.

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Forever the sun is pouring its gold On a hundred worlds that beg and borrow; His warmth he squandered on summits cold, His wealth on the homes of want and sorrow; To withhold his largeness of precious light Is to bury himself in eternal night. To give Is to live.