The Urgency of the Gospel

“Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” ~Luke 18:16-17

Twelve-year-old Julie came to horse camp with very little, if any, knowledge of the gospel. Through a few connections, this southern girl ended up at Echo Ranch Bible Camp (ERBC) in Alaska.

As the week of camp progressed, Julie learned some of the basics of the gospel, but she hadn’t quite put the pieces together. Then, one day during devotions, Julie asked our wranglers when Jesus was going to give us this gift they kept talking about. Their answer was, of course, that Jesus already gave us the gift; we just have to accept it.

With incredible enthusiasm Julie began to question why they were all just sitting around; because this gift was really important! Demanding the attention of her fellow campers she exclaimed, “Girls! Have y’all accepted this gift?!” The room of girls answered with a mixture of head nods, shakes, and some eye-rolls. Julie, still amazed, asked the wranglers when she could accept this gift. They said, “Right now.”

This story is encouraging and convicting to me at the same time. How often do we forget about the urgency of the gospel? How easily do we forget how important the gift of Jesus really is?