Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
1 Peter 1:3-5
For many years Fidelia Ford made a fruitcake for her family each Christmas. Her practice was to age the cake for nearly a year before serving it. She passed away not long after she baked the fruitcake for her Michigan family in 1878. When Christmas came, the family decided that rather than eat it, they would keep it in honor of her memory. Her descendants kept the tradition going. Now almost 150 years later, Fidelia Ford’s great, great granddaughter Julie Ruttinger maintains the heritage fruitcake, having received it after the death of her father. “He took care of it to the day he left the earth,” Ruttinger told a reporter. “We knew it meant a lot to him. It was tradition. It’s a legacy.”
Not all of the things people keep or collect and pass down for generations have significant financial value. Many of them are kept simply because of a personal connection to someone who has gone before. The story that goes along with the item is much more meaningful and important than any intrinsic value it might have. God keeps those of us who have come to Him for salvation, not because of any inherent worth or value that we have, but because of the great love He has for us and the great price that was paid for our redemption. “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:18-19). It is the great value God places on us that ensures He will keep us safe in Him.
