If You've Seen Me...

Rachel wasn't even 25 but she had been in jail and through rehab more times than she cared to admit. Her father had cashed in his retirement, lost his savings and re-mortgaged his home to get Rachel clean. Time after time, with hope in his heart he watched as she failed once again. Once day his heart was breaking as he looked out the window of his office wondering how his daughter was down on the streets below. That was the day he made the decision to take a leave from his job. His plan was to walk the city until he found his daughter...

Never forcing Rachel to stay with him, he would just go where he might see her and buy her lunch. Then if she needed clothing or food he could take her shopping. If she needed a dentist, he would get her teeth fixed. The beauty is that his plan actually happened. It wasn't long before he found Rachel, hungry and in need she willingly accepted his gifts. Day after day, he bought her lunch. Over these lunches, they had conversations they never could have had if he had stayed at his job on the 57th floor while Rachel was combing the streets. One day, he offered Rachel his keys. He promised if she would come home that he would pay once again for her rehab. He figured he would take out one more mortgage. Throughout their contact, Rachel had begun to realize how much her dad loved her. Before, when she had gone to rehab it was just to get her driver's license back. This time she felt loved and worthy of a better life. As she agreed to the idea, she still had one problem. The pimp that she worked for would probably try to kill her. She knew he'd killed others and she was scared. The father knew there was nothing he would not do for his little girl, so he gave her the keys. "If I'm not back in an hour, call the cops." He went in search of the pimp.

Rachel got in the car and waited. After a little while, she began to fear the worst. Finally, she saw her father walking toward her. His face warmed her heart. Suddenly, out of nowhere a black hummer struck him down. Rachel screamed as she recognized it was her pimp's, but it was too late. The ambulance driver shook his head. A hit and run and death. Rachel was stunned and in shock. How could any one kill someone so full of love? Her heart broke as she looked at her father's keys. Slowly, she walked toward the car turned on the ignition and held her head in her hands. Will Rachel take the keys and get cleaned up? Or will she go back to her old lifestyle? Does this story seem a little familiar? God knew He couldn't reach us from heaven. So He took a break and came down to live among us. Walking with us, He filled our needs. But His greatest desire was for us to trust Him and allow Him to bring us to safety.

Just as Rachel's father paid the ultimate cost for her bad choices, Jesus has paid for us. The cost of God saving His children was whatever it took to get them back. God Himself has not demanded the ransom--no, the wages of sin is death. It is sin itself that calls for the ransom, because sin is the unhealthy condition of living apart from God. Sin is so very expensive that it cost Jesus His life to win us back to God. We are all sin addicts, headed for death, but Jesus is offering us a better deal than sin. The question is how many of us will believe Him and come clean so that we can be safe to live with others and God for eternity?