I love Halloween. Every year I turn on my front porch light to superheroes, animals, princesses, and pirates all dressed in cool costumes. It’s exciting to hear the shouts: “Trick or treat!” and even more fun to give out candy with this Halloween treat.
The candy you get this year may be really sweet, but even sweeter than candy is knowing how much God loves you! God thinks you’re great just the way you are with freckles or warts or braces or crazy hair, it doesn’t matter.
God thinks you’re so special that he sent his Son, Jesus, to give you a wonderful gift. The Bible calls this amazing gift eternal life, or life that lasts forever.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” John 3:16.
Don’t let anyone trick you into thinking you have to be extra good so that God will love you and let you into heaven one day. None of us can be good enough to earn God’s love.
All of us do bad things (sin) like telling lies, thinking bad thoughts, or hurting other people. Our bad behavior pushes us away from God and we deserve to be punished.
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” Romans 3:23.
But Jesus took our place and was punished for us when he died on the cross and rose again. That’s how much he loves you. The Bible says:
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses (sins), made us alive together with Christ…” Ephesians 2:4,5.
You know the candy people give you at Halloween? If you didn’t accept it, it wouldn’t be yours.
The same is true with God’s great gift of forgiveness and eternal life.
You have to accept his gift. That means, ask Jesus to forgive you for the bad things you’ve done, and believe that he died for you and rose to heaven to take away your sin.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” Romans 6:23.
If you want God’s amazing gift of eternal life, then say a prayer like this:
God, I’m sorry I do bad things. Please forgive me. I believe your only Son, Jesus Christ, died on the cross and rose again to take away my sins. Thank you for loving me so much and giving me your gift of eternal life. Amen!