Early Conversations

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

Chorus, Jesus Paid It All, Elvina M. Hall, 1865 

I love it when it all comes together …
When I woke up this morning, the chorus of Jesus Paid It All was ringing in my ears. I must admit my first thought was, Huh? But okay, I’ve learned that when God starts being all chatty so early in the morning, he has lots to say and wants my attention immediately. So I went with it.
Standing in the shower I start singing the words. Okay, I thought, that’s powerful. But I’m still waking up here, Father. I get it, I get it.
I move onto devotions. Surely, I’ll get into some deep meaning in scripture. My reading is Romans 5:8 … “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
I realized then that I didn’t get it at all. I wasn’t comprehending the significance of my morning. I needed to ponder, really reach into what I was hearing.
Then it hit me. I can do all I want that’s good … I can talk the Christian talk … I can act like I know what Life’s all about. But bottom line, if it wasn’t for Jesus’ willingness to take what I deserve and offer me grace instead of judgment, it’d all be for nothing. Nada. Zero. I know that it isn’t cool to talk about messy things like “blood” and “judgment”, but that is the bottom line. I owe all my peace, sleep-filled nights, and tender heart to my Savior. Without his willingness to give himself as he did, I’d still be the pathetic wacko I started out as so many years earlier.  But now I have another option; Grace.
My day’s been filled with whistling a catchy tune today. Yes, Jesus DID pay it all. And I will forever be grateful. I’m so glad he woke me up the way he did.