It's one of my least favorite parts of travel: car rental.
It begins with a wrestling match online, where it is nearly impossible to gauge the total price of your car before you hit the “Purchase Now” button. Airport surcharges, city taxes, “recovery fees” and other cash-snatching schemes pile on to the price.
Forget about "naming your own price!"
That's why I make it a point to low-ball any offer I make online. Contrary to the ad campaigns, they really don't want you to “name your own price.” Evidence? They nearly always discourage me from making my bid, while very “helpfully” suggesting a much higher figure.
Anyway, your plane lands and there you are ready to pick up your vehicle at the rental counter. That's when they begin the heavy hustle for add-ons and extras…along with the threat of charging you $10 per drop of gas (or something close to that), should you fail to return the tank full.
Was this a mistake?
But there I was earlier this week in Denver, having reserved a car online for $21/day. I'd successfully evaded the airport money monsters and proceeded to my assigned slot.
There it was: a stunning black Mercedes Benz. Leather seats, digital-everything–this car was loaded. And the keys were in my hand. Was this a mistake? Had I somehow won the car rental lottery? What had I done to earn this sweet ride?
Answer: nothing.
The best gifts
Forgive me for making a hairpin turn here, but isn't that somehow an image of the kindness and grace of our God? He loves to give good gifts just because He's kind. For no apparent reason other than He likes to bless us, He gives us the best gifts. Sometimes those gifts are as simple as a plate of hot toast. Sometimes they're as enduring as a kiss on the cheek.
And then there's God's ultimate gift—the gift of being “saved by grace through faith,” also known in Ephesians 2:8, 9 as “the gift of God.” It’s the gift of being forgiven of our long list of offenses (sins), the gift of restoration with God. It’s the gift of God’s personal guide, the Holy Spirit. And—it’s the gift of eternal life in heaven.
Have you received this gift—the gift of Jesus?