The Story of the Pen

Today, I want to share a story that is on my heart: 

The room was filled to the brim with teens of every color, shape and size, about 300 in attendance.  A man, dressed in dark blue jeans with a hole on the knee stood up in front of the crowd.  He was a tall man, slender, tan skin with thinning blond hair and piercing green eyes.  He reached into his flannel shirt pocket and pulled out a shiny metallic pen. 

“I want to tell you about my pen,” he began.  “This is an amazing pen, it can write in three different colors.  It writes smoothly and the ink flows well, even if you aren’t holding it up and down.  This pen is the pen astronauts’ use.  Do you want this pen?  It is a really great pen, and you can have it”.  No one in the crowded room rose.  They had been told to sit still and listen when someone was in front of you, not to approach them.  What would people think if they were to get up and move towards the stage to accept such a neat pen? 

“No really,” he said, “it is yours, all you have to do is to take it, it is a really expensive pen, it sells for around $50.  Who wants it?”

Everyone looked around.  Some teens were attempting to build up the courage to go up and take the shiny pen; others were just sitting there.  Who was going to get it?  Who was going to get up the nerve and defy what they had been taught and go up front and get the pen?  Who was going to take a chance?

The man’s eyes looked around the room.  He attempted to make eye contact with some of the teens and they turned their heads away.  Even teens from this man’s group wouldn’t go up and take the pen.  The tall man sighed heavily and put the pen back into his pocket. 

“So, am I to assume that out of all of you, no one wants this pen?” 

Still no one rose. 

“This was a gift to you, from me, but the only way it would become yours is if you were to accept it.  A gift is an amazing thing to give, but it isn’t truly yours until you accept it.  Each and everyone of you had the option of coming up and taking this gift that I had, but now no one has it, it still belongs to me, because no one accepted the gift.

“I know that you have all heard the story of the man Jesus Christ.  Many of you have grown up in the church and have heard about how much Jesus loves you since you were little.  Many of you know all the verses and sing all the songs, and that is awesome!  It is important to know those verses and sing the songs. 

“But, Jesus gave us a gift.  We were separated from God because man sinned.  We have all sinned.  And Jesus came to earth to die on the cross for those sins.  Jesus was sent to earth to live a perfect life and then die on the cross for our sins so that we could be with God again.  Jesus was sent as a sacrifice for us.  He was sent to save you, and he was sent to save me.  He is standing, knocking at the door of your heart offering you a great gift.  He is offering you a way back to being connected with God; he is offering you the gift of eternal life. 

“The Bible says in Revelation 3:20 ‘Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.’ It says in Romans 3:23 ‘for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’.  In John 14:6 Jesus says, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’

Don’t you see, Jesus is offering us this amazing gift!  We could sit in our seats, comfortable and not take this gift like none of you stood to take the amazing pen, or you could stand up, and accept this gift that Jesus is offering to you.  You can accept it, it might be uncomfortable, it might mean that you have to change your life a little, but it is an awesome gift He is offering.  Does anyone want to accept that gift today?  Does anyone want to open their heart’s door and let Jesus in?”

As the man paused, a young lady in the audience, who had really wanted the pen but didn’t have the nerve to stand up and take it, raised her hand ever so slightly.  Her eyes looked around, she lowered it just a little.

The man continued, “it is okay, don’t look around, don’t let anyone else make this decision for you.  Don’t let anything stop you from getting something that you have seen for years, but have never accepted.  You see your friends have it, but you don’t have it.  You have seen and heard about this in church, but until you accept it, it is not yours.”

The girl hesitated again.  She didn’t want to be the only one to step up and have the spot light on her, but she also knew that she needed to accept this gift.  She swallowed hard looked at the girl next to her who gave her a reassuring wink and the shy, young girl stood up.  Forget raising her hand, if she was going to do it, she was going to do it fully. 

Seeing the young girl stand, the man stopped talking.  He smiled at her, motioned for her to come up.  A second girl then stood and walked forward, followed by a young boy, and then a youth leader.  Suddenly the room was full of teens standing, moving forward, and accepting the gift that Jesus is offering.

Crouching down to the young girl, the man said, “young lady, it looks like you just started a revival, I have a feeling God has great things in store for you.”

That is the end of the story and I know that it happens all the time, around the country, this is similar to what I witnessed happen multiple times on our youth trips.  Why is it that we think about that only on special occasions, or at church?  If you think about it right now, there is a great gift waiting for us, all we have to do is to accept it.  I hope and pray that you have accepted this amazing gift and that God has great things in store for you too.