HOW LONG have you been lying here, Mrs. Brown?" said a visitor to an old lady whose face told a tale of years of suffering.
"Oh a long while now," she replied; "And I don't suppose. I shall ever get about again."
"Are you a Christian?"
"I'm trying to be one."
Her friend was silent for a moment. Then as if a new thought struck him, he inquired, "Do you ever try to be Mrs. Brown?"
"No, I am Mrs. Brown."
"How long have you been Mrs. Brown?"
"Ever since our wedding day," she answered with some surprise.
"And have you any doubt about it?"
"None whatever," she replied. Then holding up her hand she added, "I have known I was Mrs. Brown ever since that ring was put on my finger."
"That is just how it is with me," said her visitor. "I do not try to be a Christian, but I know I am one, and that I have belonged to the Lord Jesus Christ ever since I put out an empty hand and received Him as my Saviour. Nothing that I've ever done or ever could do has gained everlasting life for me, but simply by believing God's Word that 'While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us' — just receiving Jesus as my Substitute, and believing that now 'being justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.' " (Rom. 5:8,98But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. (Romans 5:8‑9)).
This was new light to poor Mrs. Brown, struggling on in darkness and doubt, seeking by her own efforts to earn that everlasting life which God will not sell to anyone, but which He bestows as a free gift upon "whosoever will believe."
Messages of the Love of God 12/14/1975