A Blank Piece of Paper

Bible Reading: Romans 6:13, 16; 12:1-2

“Who will volunteer to sign this?” asked Miss Miller, showing her Sunday school class a sheet of paper.

“What’s it for?” asked one of the kids as several hands went up.

“Well, when you sign it, you’ll be agreeing to do whatever I write on the paper,” said Miss Miller. The hands promptly went back down. “It might be something hard—or easy,” Miss Miller continued. “But whatever it is, you’ll be glad you did it. Now, who will sign this?” There were several giggles, but no volunteers. “Isn’t there anyone who trusts me?” Miss Miller asked.

Finally, Thea raised her hand. “I’ll sign it, Miss Miller.”

After Thea signed her name, Miss Miller took the paper and began writing. Everyone eagerly waited to see what she wrote. When she finished, she handed the paper to Thea.

“Go to the table in the corner,” Thea read, “and open the box you see there. Whatever you find inside is yours to keep.” Thea jumped up and hurried to the table. “Oh, wow!” she exclaimed, pulling brand-new packages of stickers, crayons, and a coloring book from the box. “Thank you, Miss Miller!”

“And thank you, Thea, for trusting me when no one else did,” Miss Miller replied. She smiled at the class. “When we give our lives to Jesus, it’s a little like signing a blank sheet of paper,” she told them. “We say, ‘Lord, I’m surrendering my life to You. You write the orders.’ When we do this, God blesses us. But before Thea could receive her reward, what did she have to do?”

“Sign the paper,” said Amy. “Even though she didn’t know what it would say.”

“And then she had to do what the paper said,” Brent added.

Miss Miller nodded. “She had to trust me, and she had to obey me—whether it was hard or easy. It’s like that in our relationship with Jesus too. We don’t have to be afraid to hand our lives over to Him, because He was willing to give up His own life to save us. We must trust Him and obey Him. As we obey His commands to us in the Bible and follow His leading in our lives, the rewards

He promises are worth more than anything He asks us to give up.”

-Barbara J. Westberg

How About You?

Are you afraid to surrender your life to Jesus? Do you think He’ll ask you to do something hard? That could be true, but the reward of trusting and obeying Him will outweigh anything He asks you to give up. Trust Him and do whatever it is you know He wants you to do. He was willing to give up His life so you could experience all the good things He has in store for you.

Today’s Key Verse:
Romans 12:1 I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. (NIV)

Today’s Key Thought:

Trust and obey Jesus