There was a doctor who told the little boy that he could save his sister’s life by giving her some of his blood. “Johnny, are you sure you want to give your blood for Mary?” the doctor asked. The boy hesitated for several moments; his lips trembled as tears filled his eyes. His parents and the doctor assured Johnny that the procedure would not be very painful and would be over with quickly. Finally, he smiled bravely and said, “Sure Doc. I’ll give my blood for my sister.” As the transfusion took place, the little girl began to respond immediately. Parents, doctors and nurses erupted into cheers and applause. When the ordeal was almost over, Johnny’s brave little voice was heard, “Hey, Doc, when do I die?” A stunned silence fell across the room. The doctor and parents suddenly realized what Johnny was thinking. Johnny thought when he gave his blood to his sister, he would die – a very high price that he was willing to pay.

If you found out that you had the only bone marrow transplant to save the life of a loved one, what would you do? Would you keep it to yourself? Would you hesitate before deciding? Likely, in this scenario you would not hesitate, you would gladly give of your bone marrow to save the life of your loved one.

Giving bone marrow is like giving blood. Your body will reproduce the marrow you need to sustain your life within a couple of days. Therefore, by giving of your bone marrow, you lose nothing. Quite the contrary, you gain. By giving of yourself – your bone marrow – you gain the extended life of your loved one.

You may never be asked to give some of your blood or bone marrow to save your sister’s life (or any other loved one). But my guess is just as little Johnny willingly stepped up to donate his blood to save the life of his sister you would likely do the same.

If you have the joy of Christ living inside you, you too are like little Johnny. Whatever gifts, talents, and abilities God has bestowed on you is to be shared with others. These are not given to you for your own glorification or gratification, but to glorify God by sharing them with others, to build others up. And the great ideal here is that whatever you give away of your gifts, talents, and abilities, you lose nothing. In fact you gain. The more you use what God has blessed you with, the more He will bless you in return. The more you use these abilities and talents for the glory of God the more Joy of Christ will be imparted to you.

Love that never fails is willing to pay a great price and make a great sacrifice. Love that never fails is yours to receive and yours to give.

For more information on knowing the true Love of Christ contact George Yates and visit SonC.A.R.E. Ministries.