Today I saw a magic wand in my mind's eye. In fairy tales, whoever wields a wand has power over another to bestow good or bad gifts. God is not like that. He is giving us the choice to come to Him, to be with Him, for Him to bestow the good gifts that He has for us. Jesus told His disciple Philip, "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father" (John 14:9), having previously said that He had come to give abundant life (see John 10:10). Jesus is in the image of God, the bestower of abundant life. However, it is completely our choice to believe His Words or not. In John 12:47 we read Jesus's Words, "If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge Him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it". Phew to there being no judgement now. I do ask though - "Do you have an assured better alternative?" In due course, when Jesus returns as He has further promised, He will indeed then make judgements and receive those who have chosen to be with Him. "When the Son of Man comes in His glory and all His angels are with Him, he will sit on His glorious throne ... He will put the sheep on His right but the goats on His left. Then the king will say to those on His right, 'Come, my Father has blessed you! Inherit the kingdom prepared for you ..." (Matthew 25:31, 33-34).