One of my very favorite TV shows of all time is “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” I’m a sucker for happy endings, I guess because in real life they seem to be so few and far between. I enjoy seeing things made right, dreams coming true, worries and burdens lifted. There’s nothing like watching the family when they see their new homes for the first time. They’ve been given something huge – something they could never obtain for themselves - with no strings attached – and they seem to be so grateful. They say thank you over and over again, they jump up and down, they hug each other, they hug the cast and crew, but, mostly, they just cry. And I cry, too.
I was especially touched by a rerun recently. The “Makeover” family had lost something far more precious than their house – something that could never be replaced. Their teenage son had been killed in a car accident. This would rip anyone’s emotions out, but, as the mother of three teenagers myself, this family’s story was almost more than I could bear. We eventually learn that this precious boy was an organ donor. Through his death, several lives were saved, and grateful families changed forever.
In an especially touching twist, a surprise meeting was arranged between the “Makeover” family and the family of the young woman who received this boy’s heart. Deep, complicated emotions ran freely. Just imagine being part of either family.
. . .the grieving mama wept both tears of sorrow and tears of joy as she clung to this sweet girl, pressing her ear on her chest, hearing the beautiful music of that beating heart. . . the heart of her son . . . the heart that saved this girl’s very life. If my son’s heart were beating in that girl’s chest, I might find myself asking for a few things in return - to take good care of that heart. Physically, spiritually. Make a difference with your life. Never forget that every moment of your life is a gift. Use them wisely. Someone died to make them possible for you. Honor him.
. . .the girl’s parents . If money could have bought a heart for their dying daughter, they would have given everything they had. But, all the money in the all the banks in the world wouldn’t be enough. This new heart came at a much higher price.
. . . the young girl, who literally owes every morning she wakes up to a teenage boy she has never met. She owes him her very life. A gift she did not earn, and one she will never be able to repay.
Maybe this touched me so deeply because I, too, have been given a new heart. Not in a hospital operating room, but on the Cross.
The Father wept as he watched his precious Only Son die to give me life. Tears of sorrow for His Son. Tears of joy for me. He loves us both, you see.
Would I take this priceless, blood-bought life for granted? Sometimes. Would I waste hours, days, on things that don’t matter? Of course. Would my actions and attitudes resemble those who don’t even know who Jesus is? Often. Would there be days that I would forget the price that was paid for my new heart, trading it’s strength and purity for far lesser things? All the time.
He knew these things about me, and yet, He allowed His Son to pay the ultimate price – to give His very life – for mine. While I was a sinner, Christ died for me.
So, what do I do now? How do I repay Someone Who gave his very life for me?
I take good care of this new heart. Guard it. Protect it. Feed it with good things. Soak it in the Word. Be thankful, really thankful, for every day, treating it as the precious gift it is.
I will live like Someone died for me.
I will give my life back to Him.
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