Give Me What I Deserve!
My Uncle Larry and his family were missionaries in Zambia, Africa in the early 80’s. I was lucky enough to be able to visit them for three weeks while they were there, a trip that still impacts me to this day. Not long after my uncle moved to Zambia, someone tried to break in to break in their house. The robber was caught in the act. They had a big pit on the edge of their property where they threw their trash and then buried it. The robber didn’t know it was there and fell in it while running away. He apparently sprained an ankle badly because he couldn’t move.
Larry, with the help of a neighbor, took the robber to the Police. They had a trial on the spot and found the guy guilty. The penalty for breaking in to someone elses house was….THEY CUT OFF A HAND!!! My uncle did not know this and begged the Police not to do that. But this robber had been caught before and since it was a second offense, cutting off a hand was the only punishment available. The only way to avoid this was for my uncle not to press charges. Uncle Larry later said that he could not live with himself knowing he could have kept someone from losing a hand and didn’t. So my uncle dropped the charges even though the robber repeatedly asked that he be given what he deserved.
The next day the robber showed up at my uncle’s front door, still limping badly. He told them that he was now indebted to them and needed a way to show his gratitude for the mercy that had been shown to him. He said he wanted to work off the debt he now felt he owed. My uncle agreed and allowed the robber to be a gardener for his yard and to take care of the 15 fruit trees they had.
Fast forward several months. “Henry” the former robber, was still working for my uncle but not for free. Uncle Larry began to pay Henry from day one and continued this practice. In fact, they became friends and Larry eventually lead Henry to Christ. Henry cared for my relatives like no other. It was a relationship that started with grace and mercy that is hard to find now days.
If ever there’s a prayer I’m NOT praying it’s “Lord, give me what I deserve.” When you get right down to it, none of us deserve to even be alive. We certainly don’t deserve to have all the comforts of life. We certainly don’t deserve to be saved. By by His grace, He doesn’t give us what we deserve.