Daily Devotions
But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the Law, to redeem those who were under the Law. Galatians 4:4-5
There are jobs that are both sweet and sour. Joshua Dawson has one of those jobs.
Dawson, working for the I Am Genie Foundation, goes by the nickname, “The Experience Genie.” In his role as The Experience Genie, Dawson has, so far, visited 70 different cities in the U.S. In those cities he has spent over $1 million trying to fulfill the wishes and dreams of others. Recently, he gave away a helicopter tour, a visit to a spa, and an evening at a fancy restaurant.
Making other people happy by granting them their surprise fulfillment of their heart’s desire is the sweet part of Dawson’s job.
And the sour part? To be a recipient of Dawson’s unexpected benevolence you have to be diagnosed as having terminal cancer. Now if you’re wondering just how Dawson got himself involved with such a sweet-sour job, the answer is this: his dad died of cancer when he was only 53 years old. When that happened, Dawson dedicated himself to making the lives of those who are dying of cancer just a little bit better.
In some respects Dawson’s job seems much like that of our Savior.
You see, a long time ago, according to the will and wish of His Father, Jesus Christ came into this world for the purpose of making better the lives of those who were spiritually dying. His job wasn’t so much to give us that which we wanted as to bestow that which we most needed.
It was a job that was both sweet and sour.
On the one hand, Jesus raised a dead son, a dead daughter, a dead brother, and restored them to thankful families. He healed lepers and reunited them with their previous lives. He spoke words of peace to those who were troubled and joy to those who were oppressed. He freed people from their sins and gave them an opportunity to be saved. That was the sweet part of Jesus’ life.
And the sour? That which Jesus gave came at a cost. No, He didn’t spend millions of dollars. No government treasury has ever been flush enough to pay the price for our forgiveness. In order for Jesus to give us what we needed it was necessary for Him to be rejected, to be beaten, to be unfairly tried and then, crucified.
It was a price the loving Lord was willing to pay. Now, the risen Redeemer desires to come to every person in every town in every nation of the world. He wants to come and tell them He has done all that is necessary for them to be forgiven and have salvation.
And the more people who are brought to faith, the sweeter His job must be.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord Jesus, I give You thanks for drinking the sour cup of suffering so my eternity might be sweet. In Your Name I give thanks. Amen.