While staying on the island of Mull for a few days one afternoon I sat by the waters’ edge on the South shore of Ben More. I was feeling a bit depressed and disappointed at my attitude as a Christian. It was the summer holidays and our Sunday school was on holiday for a number of weeks but was due starting again soon. really was not looking forward to getting back into harness again and felt guilty about this, knowing how much Jesus had done for me.
It was while I was weighed down and feeling like this that I sat on a stone right by the waters’ edge. I was reading a little booklet called: “The Heart at Rest” by Saint Augustine. The title of the article I was reading was, “Freely Freely you have received.” It read like this: “Are only those who have not sinned blessed? No, those are blessed whose sins have been forgiven. That grace is given to us freely: we have no good works to show yet he forgives us our sins.” (See Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 3:4-5).
I looked away from my book to meditate on those words and discovered the tide was at this very moment beginning to turn. It was starting to retreat. So it is in a persons life when the tide of sin begins to overflow the soul, faith in the free gift of salvation without works turns the tide. A great release from drowning in sin is experienced.
“When the enemy comes in like a flood the Spirit of the Lord will raise up a standard against him.” (Isaiah 59:19 AV version)
Donnie Black