NOVEMBER 14, Romans 8:35-39

“I want to ask you something, Mom,” said Emily hesitantly as her mother tucked her into bed one evening. “I gave my life to Jesus last month, but it seems like I’m still always doing something wrong - like getting so mad at Jason tonight. When I do stuff like that, I ask God to forgive me, but… what if I forget to ask Him? Or what if I don’t even think about the fact that I’ve sinned?” She paused. “Then am I still saved?”

Mom sat down on the bed. “Jesus’ death paid for all your sins,” she said. “God will never disown you if you’ve put your trust in Him.” “You’re sure?” asked Emily.

“I’m sure,” said Mom. She pointed to a porcelain doll on Emily’s dresser. “I see that you’ve cleaned up that doll,” she said. “Tell me again where it came from.”

“You know where I got it, Mom,” replied Emily. “We bought it at a flea market at Ang Mo Kio. It looked quite yucky then, but we put on new clothes for it.” Emily grinned. “It looks great now, don’t you think?” “Yes, it does.” Mom nodded. “It’s beautiful, so enjoy it while you can. Your room sometimes gets pretty dusty, you know. Before long, your doll will be covered with dust, and then I suppose you’ll throw it out.”

“Throw it out?!” exclaimed Emily. “Are you kidding? It could never look any worse than when I got it! It was covered with dust, but I didn’t throw it away. And I sure wouldn’t ever throw it away after all the work I did to make it look good! I’ll just clean it whenever it needs it. I want this doll.”

Mom smiled. “I thought you’d say that,” she said. “Dear girl, don’t you see that God loves you much more than you love that doll? Your life was full of sin, but Jesus died to save you from it. When you put your trust in Him, He made you part of His family. He’s not going to just ‘throw you away’ now-not after all He’s done for you.”

Thought: Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Saviour from sin? God says that if you have received Jesus into your life, nothing can ever separate you from His love and all your sins will be washed away. You will not lose your salvation!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for the assurance that once I am saved, I am always saved. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.