My mother tells this story about growing up after the war with her two older brothers. They never usually wanted her to include her in their games, especially when they were pretending to be soldiers – marching round the garden with sticks for guns! However, on this particular day, they invited her to join in. Equipped with a suitably gun like stick, Mum couldn’t believe her luck! Obviously, the boys at last had come to their senses and realised her fighting potential!
So, she began to march behind them, following, she thought, in their footsteps. But their legs were longer and their strides were bigger. Left, right, left, right! Whoops! Next thing she knew, Mum had fallen into a hole and was scrabbling to get out! Yes, it was a trap. Unbeknown to her, the boys had dug out a hole and disguised it with sticks, twigs and leaves. Knowing where it was, they had stepped over it as they marched. But Mum had fallen right in!
We are often warned by the media that if an offer seems too good to be true, it probably is. However, God offers completely free salvation. Forgiveness from every sin, past, present and future –any size, anyway, anyone. All we need to do is believe. No qualifications, experience, cost required and resulting in no more guilt and life eternal. Now that’s a truly good offer!