September 9, 2002  

THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF "WHICH?"

A certain man fell under the spell of alcohol. It was not long before the damage from his abuse extended beyond himself and sucked his wife into its whirlpool. She stuck with him through years of depressing poverty and defeat. They lost their home and he became chronically unemployed. If he managed to earn a few dollars, he spent it on alcohol. His wife slaved at an entry-level job to keep food on the table and a roof overhead.

One day the man stumbled into a rescue mission. Desperate, he responded to the invitation and called out to Jesus for help. He was spiritually transformed that day, and with the help of a support system of recovering alcoholics, he rebuilt his life piece by piece. In a short time, he landed a solid job and began to contribute to the family finance.

One day he decided to reach out to his parents, who had given up on him years ago. He rushed to get ready after supper, and he called to his wife, "Will you put out my sports jacket?" She called back, "Which?"

Somehow that said it all to him. "Which?" There was a choice! By God's grace, he now had two jackets. His self-indulgence had robbed him of the power to choose. He had been a slave to alcohol. Now he was able to make choices between several good options. God's bounty was now at his disposal.

Which course will you take? Which car will you buy? Which man will you marry? Which restaurant will you eat at? Every time you say "Which?" you are testifying to God's grace. Like the man in our story, you should be amazed that you are able to make choices.

Some of us have had so many choices for so long that we've lost the wonder. Instead of rejoicing that we can choose between two jackets, we complain that we don't have four, or that we don't have the one with the latest designer logo

Every choice we make is an opportunity for us to praise God for his lavish grace. Every time we ask "Which?" we can speak it like a prayer of thanksgiving.

The majority of people in the world have very few choices. They are enslaved, not necessarily to alcohol, but to poverty, disease, injustice, hopelessness. We should be working to open "Which?" doors to those who have such limited opportunities.

But the Gospel is an offer of spiritual deliverance that can be experienced even by people in the most squalid circumstances. The proclaimer of the Gospel—preacher, missionary, or lay witness—presents the story of Jesus. A person is faced with a real spiritual choice: "Which will it be, Yes of No to him?" Those who answer Yes to this "Which?" question will find many other creative choices opening before them. They will enter into the atmosphere of God's grace, where they will be able to make expanding choices on into eternity.

–Pastor George VanAlstine