Day One Hundred Three “Benefit Packages”
I don’t always pick up on things immediately, but one insight that I gained when I officially crossed the threshold into senior citizen-hood came to me effortlessly, and here it is…weeding one’s way through the myriad of insurance packages available is one tangled, complicated, expensive endeavor. Allow me to put that into layman’s terms, it is one hot mess! You are eligible for this procedure, but only if it’s done in that particular hospital, and only under a crescent moon (note sarcasm); yes, you can have those new glasses, but the lenses to put in the frames, probably not; sure, go get that yearly oral exam, as long as you don’t need any repair work, he can look at the teeth, but can’t touch them. Makes my head spin and my wallet weep! My husband was blessed with premium health benefits during his trucking career, and regrettably, I took all that provided medical coverage for granted. Now, in a season of life when those benefits are needed the most, they are gone. To me, the whole ordeal has been a painful reminder to be thankful in the present, for what you have now could vanish tomorrow.
I was reminded of my benefit woes as I read through Psalm 103 this morning. What an awesome God we have! This psalm is filled to the brim with God’s benefits afforded to us, benefits that are never, EVER, revoked. Ponder with me just a small sampling of benefits that popped out to me as I read: He forgives “as far as the east is from the west,” He heals, redeems, crowns us “with lovingkindness,” satisfies our mouths with good things, He renews our youth (love this one!), executes righteousness for the oppressed, is plenteous in mercy, gracious, and slow to anger. Best of all, He is not some random concierge in an office, a stranger to whom we are but a number, “For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.”
We are not His clients, we are His children, He has an invested interest in our well-being. He created us, He knows us, is cognizant of our needs and desires, and He loves us beyond understanding. And this amazing benefit plan comes freely, with no cost to us, for Christ paid for the entire package with His shed blood at Calvary. Now that is a benefit plan that can’t be passed up! Have you thanked Him for those benefits today?
Psalm 103:1-2 Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits;
O, my dearest Savior, thank You for Your provisions to this unworthy vessel. I am humbled as I see all that is mine through Christ, freely given. Thank You for Your grace.
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