Happy Endings

We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. (Romans 6:9-13 ESV). I enjoy true stories with happy endings. The following is such a story. A middle-aged woman named Norma expressed that she felt like the walls of the church would crumble when she took the first steps to know Jesus Christ in the summer of 1995. At one time, Norma was steeped in a life of drinking, drugs, sexual immorality and confusion. Today, 'Miss Norma' (as she likes to be called) is sober and has a totally different outlook on life. "God has just gotten into my heart," she states. What's more, she is now a staunch supporter of the pro-life movement. What makes this last statement significant is that most people may better know Miss Norma as "Jane Roe," the former plaintiff in the 1973 Supreme Court ruling of "Roe V Wade" on abortion. What is most inspiring about this 49 year old woman's story is that her conversion to Christianity is viable proof of how Christ can so completely turn around a life when there is true repentance and a desire to do what is acceptable in the sight of God. The Scripture in our reading today relays that "whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." The Apostle Paul also teaches us that the Lord is rich in mercy to those who call upon Him (Cf. Ephesians 2:4-5). Like billions of others who have barely escaped eternal damnation in Hell, Miss Norma's initial apprehension when entering church was due to the realization that she, like all of us, are sinners, and that it is only through God's grace that we may be saved. It is not an easy task to admit that we have failed God. Thankfully, God is not there to condemn those who cry out to Him, but to rejoice and tenderly guide us into His loving arms. When there is genuine remorse for transgressions of the past, there is a desire for a better way, a way that is pure and acceptable in God's eyes. And like Miss Norma's dramatic turn-around, the Bible declares that "if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (Cf. 2 Corinthians 5:17). What a truly great and loving Father we have! Will your story have a happy ending?