I received a letter from the mayor of Eisenach, Germany offering me a free ten-day trip to Germany. That was the city where Luther went to school in the shadow of the Wartburg Castle! They were celebrating a major anniversary and wanted me to experience their city first hand. Free!

I had my hand on the phone in a flash to call the 800 number and sign up when I saw the fine print: "...when you recruit and register 40 passengers to join you."

What a disappointment! There are a lot of ads offering something for nothing ...with certain expensive strings attached. We might well conclude that "nothing in life is truly free".

However, there is one thing that is free to all believers - God’s gracious love and our salvation. It wasn’t exactly free either. It came at a very high price which God paid "not with silver and gold, but with the precious blood of His own Son." We can’t pay for it no matter how hard we try. In fact, our attempt to do so is an insult to the One who gave Himself for us. So, what do you say when someone gives you a free gift - an eternal gift - THE eternal gift of Salvation?