Deal No Deal

Fellow staff members have been giving me a "hard" time for quite awhile for not blogging. They each have their own "blogs". So, to quiet them and to challenge myself in a new exercise I've "officially" entered the world of blogging.

There's a game show on TV that I have found to be entertaining, challenging and relaxing for me to watch. It's called "DEAL or NO DEAL". My wife even gave me my own personal electronic game of this show so that I can play it interactively on our TV.

In case you haven't seen the show, it is hosted by Howie Mandel (who is an interesting character himself). Twenty-six lovely ladies carrying 26 briefcases enter the stage. Each of the cases has a dollar amount in it ranging from one cent to one million dollars. A contestant selects a briefcase that they believe the million dollars is in. The contestant begins picking other cases - a few at a time - trying to work their way to the million dollars - BUT - after every few cases - there's a banker who offers a certain amount of money to try to buy them out of the game.

The show's host, Howie, then looks at the contestant and asks the question, "DEAL or NO DEAL"? The contestant has to decide whether to take the offer and end the game or keep playing.

In life God has made "deals" available to us as His creatures. He made Adam and Eve a deal, "The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and care for it. But the Lord God gave him this warning: 'You may freely eat any fruit in the garden except fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat of its fruit, you will surely die'" (Genesis 2:15-17 NLT).

What was the deal? They could live in the Garden of Eden and have personal fellowship with God - IF - they just stayed away from one particular tree. Great deal - right?

But then Satan came along (in the form of a snake) and offered them another deal (which they took) and we all know what happened as result of that.

On the flip side of this WE make (or at least try to) deals with God. It goes something like this:

God, if you'll do this for me, I've got this great deal for You ...
- I'll begin tithing
- I'll start going to church
- I'll start going to church every Sunday (and possibly a Bible study too)
- I'll read my Bible every day
- I'll be less judgmental
- I'll quit smoking
- I'll quit drinking
- I'll quit swearing
- I'll quit gossiping
- I'll be more patient
- I'll love my wife, husband, or children more and spend more time with them
- I'll stop being unfaithful to my mate

On, and on we go.

What deals have you tried to make with God?

God offers us a deal - eternal life in Jesus Christ (Romans 6:23). It is only through Jesus that we can be forgiven of our sins and have a personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. ""There is salvation in no one else! There is no other name in all of heaven for people to call on to save them" (Acts 4:12 NLT).

What do you think - DEAL or NO DEAL????

- rwsmith