I couldn’t entitle this week’s blog post anything else. After all, today is the culmination of the summer giveaway. Since June 1st, twenty-four of you have left over seventy comments on the blog. Another seven subscribers have sent comments directly to my email, but since that wasn’t part of the perimeters for the giveaway, they weren’t included in the drawing. I just thought you’d like to know that little tidbit. That means roughly one-third of subscribers participated.

Each entry then has a 1.43% chance based on actual participation. (If based on all subscribers, that was a .33% chance.) A couple of you left as many as five comments thus increasing your odds to around 7%.

A good chance compared to a lottery, but still not guaranteed.

Winning is not an unfamiliar idea, biblically speaking. There are numerous verses about winning, victory, prizes, conquering, and so forth. Death is conquered and life wins. The curse is subjugated and victorious order is restored. Evil is defeated and goodness reigns forever. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Cor 15:57, NIV “They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.” Revelation 17:14, NIV

The odds of victory in Jesus Christ? 100%.

Since we can read the end of the story, even if we might not understand all the prophetic details, we know that as lovers of God and followers of Christ and disciples of the Holy Spirit that we have chosen the winning side. God pronounced eventual victory in the Garden “He will bruise your head and you will bruise his heel”, Jesus reiterated its contractual completion on the cross when He stated Tetelestai or “it is finished” meaning the price for winning the war on death and sin was paid in full. Today’s picture symbolizes that victory over sin.

In other words, Christians can’t lose eternity. It’s a done deal.

When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” 1 Corinthians 15:54, NIV

Thank God for the assurances of salvation and eternity. He has won!

Now, drumroll please. Da-dum, da-dum, da-dum... When I asked my computer to choose a random number comment, it chose 42. That comment belongs to Myrtle Slusher. Myrtle, you have won a complete set of The Talbott Family mysteries in paperback and an Amazon gift card for $25. Congratulations!

Going forward, I will give a prize or set of prizes to one commenter per month, so keep interacting please!

This week Labor Day will be observed in the United States. The holiday traditionally honors the worker and his or her contribution to the success of the country and the economy. But work for work’s sake is often an idol in the U.S. culture. Being “busy” or “too busy” is worn as a badge or honor and value. If you don’t have every second scheduled, every moment committed to something external, you must not be a real person.

In Matthew 6, Jesus reminded His listeners that frenzied and anxious work doesn’t actually add value to life. “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?”

I’ll admit indulging in frenzied busy-ness far too often. It’s one of those easy traps to find value and validation outside of my relationship with God. Historically, I’ve said ‘yes’ and ‘I can’ many times when I should’ve said ‘no’ or ‘I can’t’.

Going through my blogs as I prepped to write this, I came upon the blogs from seven and a half years ago when I pushed myself so hard when I had bronchitis that I ended up having massive panic attack so severe that I lost touch with reality for a couple of hours. Instead of resting and healing, I had taken yet another dose of cold medicine and kept going. And I paid for it. And it took me much longer to recover from the combined events than it would’ve if I’d just listened to the doctor (and God’s many nudges to rest) in the first place.

If you think about it, Labor Day is a day off to honor the workers. It’s an acknowledgement that none of us can keep working endlessly. The body needs downtime and recovery. The mind needs rest and boredom to fuel imagination. The soul needs stillness and peace to feel the presence of God.

Therefore, why do I (or any of us) work beyond our ability—pushing ourselves into sickness, fatigue, and injury?

Last year’s Labor Day post was on the value of work. Work began in the Garden of Eden. It was not a curse, but a blessing. What changed after the fall was that work, instead of fulfilling our purpose, could become toil. It would be arduous—sometimes simply because of the thorns and thistles of life. But sometimes, and this is the focus of today’s post, because we chose effort over rest.

Choosing to work when we shouldn’t or needn’t is a way of saying to the Creator, “I don’t need your limits. I am in control.”

Then, something happens to us physically, situationally, or emotionally to remind us that we are mortal and we have broken the trust our body asks of us.

Even though Paul was using this verse in a different context, I think it still applies because we’re talking about not treating the gift of body that God gave us as a temple if we abuse it with too much work and too little rest.

 “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” I Corinthians 6:19-20

As the autumn increases in activity, Lord, remind me of the limits you gave the wonderful body that you have allowed me to use. Keep me to its limits and may the work and the labor I do accomplish glorify you. Amen.

Diana Hardt, you won this week.

Remember, this is the last week to comment on the blog and earn the possibility of winning the summer grand prize of a complete paperback set of the Talbott Family mysteries and a $25 Amazon gift card. One lucky winner will be awarded next Wednesday, September 9th, and chosen from all the comments since June 1st. Each comment is an entry!

Gary and I made plans to go to a museum we’d never before attended because its admission was pricey and most of the attractions in D.C. are free, so we’ve kinda gotten used to that. But we’d heard good things about it, so we set aside the time and the money.

We went online to purchase our tickets only to discover that the day we’d chosen was free for a special promotion.

Part of me was so ready to pay, we’d psyched ourselves up for it and budgeted for it, so I almost wanted to. But the checkout reaffirmed that the price of our tickets was absolutely nothing.

That got me thinking about salvation.

So often, so very often, I want to pay for it. While I know I can do nothing to contribute to the incredible price Jesus paid and I need only accept it, I find myself thinking, “But what if I gave something? What if I did some extra works that weren’t part of what you made me to do? What if I paid just a little?”

I can’t and I know it. The Bible says all my works are filthy rags and if you know what that translates to, you know it’s really disgusting so I’m so not going there this morning. But that doesn’t stop me wanting to do something to buy God’s favor. It’s like when someone gives you a lavish gift that you can in no way pay back.

There was such an exchange when I was a teen. My aunt, for reasons known only to her, she never told me, bought me a necklace of my birthstones for my seventeenth birthday. It was much more than the usual exchange of presents. So, wanting to do more than the usual thank you, I made her a card—the prettiest I could with all the supplies I had. I think I remember even putting lace on it. I was trying to pay back beauty with beauty. But the disparity made my effort ridiculous, though she thanked me for it. But she had been content with my gratitude and didn’t need the card.

How much more extreme is it when I try to pay anything toward the salvation that I had no ability to achieve? After all, He is content with my gratitude.

 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9, ESV)

With the ticket, with the necklace, I could only accept. I couldn’t pay for something that was already paid for.

Long before I was born, Jesus paid the penalty for the Garden in full. Upon the cross, He said “Tetelestai!” which means “paid in full”. His death purchased heaven for all who call upon His name in grateful and obedient belief. My status as a child of God was already paid for. I can’t pay for it again. (Not that I ever could!)

Instead, every time I start to think that way, I have to remember that I can make my card of construction paper and lace out of gratitude. I can walk in obedience and do the works He designed me for, while acknowledging that I owe Him absolutely nothing for His absolutely everything. I can accept and walk in the gift.

Wow, so many comments last week! Because of that, I will be sending off two gifts this week. The winner of Guzzy Goofball plus a couple bonuses is Antoinette M and Teri Ware wins a collection of gifts. If each of you could email me your address at [email protected], I will send those right out to you.

2 more weeks of this summer giveaway!