God is Love

     A young boy carved a small sailboat from a block of wood. When the boat was

finished he couldn't wait to try it out. Racing to a nearby stream, the boy knelt on

the shore, gently slid the boat into the water and let it go. With a quiet reverence the

boy watched his precious boat gather speed as it floated away. Before he could react,

his boat was swept of reach. His precious boat was gone! The little boy frantically

looked until there was no light, but he could not find his boat. With a saddened heart

the boy headed home.

     Several days later, the boy was walking down the main street of town when he

saw his boat in the toy store window. He couldn't believe it! The boy ran inside to

the owner. "Mister, that's my boat," he cried. The owner, disbelieving said, "young

man, I just bought that boat. If you want it, you'll have to pay for it." Near tears,

the boy exclaimed, "please sir, I worked so hard on that boat, and then I lost it! It

really is mine." The owner shook his head, "nevertheless, I paid good money for

that boat. You will have to buy it if you want it."

     The little boy raced home, grabbed his piggy bank, and ran back to the toy store.

Dumping his piggy bank onto the counter he asked, "is that enough?" The owner

nodded and handed him the boat. The boy cradled the precious boat in his arms

saying, "little boat, you are twice mine! Once because I made you and once because

I paid for you."

     The boy ran home for his piggy bank, he didn't think about what it would cost him! He was willing to give it all to hold his precious boat again. In that essence aren't we all little boats? God created us and then He paid the blood of  his son, Jesus Christ, to get us all back.
     Do you think of your relationship with God that way? Doesn't God remind us of that every day... "You are twice mine!" God loves us. Just as that little boy loved his boat. Twice owned by God.
      God is love. (1 John 4:8) Love is not just a feeling, it is an action. This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. (1 John 3:16) To know God is to understand love. Some days all you want to know is that you are loved and thought of... I will always remember this story on those days!

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