Excitement filled the air. There was dancing and jubilation. Great fireworks filled the dark night sky. Candles flickered like fireflies in the darkness as the electricity was cut off on the island. It was the night of Grenada’s independence.
Grenada is a tiny but beautiful island in the Caribbean. Grenada is also known as the Isle of Spice, where everything is nice. The sparkling blue Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean surround this lovely island. The climate is warm and sunny, and the people are friendly and hard-working.
Everyone in Grenada is like one big happy family. If you or your parents were born in Grenada, you are a part of the Grenadian family. The Grenadian people were happy to be living in their beautiful country.
How did this beautiful country come about? God is the Creator of everything. He created plants, animals, and people. He created you and me, and all other human beings. He even created this beautiful island, Grenada. He made the warm sunshine, the sparkling blue seas, the sky, the animals, the lush green vegetation, and all the aromatic spices that we love. God created this beautiful island and all the wonderful things in it because He loves us! In Jeremiah 31:3 God says that He loves you with an everlasting love!
God, the Creator lives in heaven. Heaven is a beautiful place. It is even more beautiful than the palace that Queen Elizabeth lives in! The Bible says that the streets of heaven are paved with gold, more gold than the Queen of England or any other person could ever have or imagine.
The Bible also says that there are many mansions in heaven. God loves you so much that He wants you to live with him in heaven someday even though you love living on your island!
Once, Grenada was ruled by a powerful country named Great Britain. Today we call this country England. The head of Britain is the Queen of England. Her name is Queen Elizabeth. Queen Elizabeth lives in a palace surrounded by many pretty and dazzling things like gold. She is very rich. The Queen and her Government got some of their riches from Grenada and other countries which they controlled. Grenadians had to obey all of the Queen’s commands.
After a while, however, the people of Grenada had a problem; they were not happy with the Queen and the British ruling over them. They wanted to be free from the control of the British Government. They wanted to manage their own affairs. They wanted their independence. An independent country can make its own decisions. For example, they can choose their own Prime Minister, their national anthem, and national flag. Grenadians wanted to use their talent and their resources to serve their country better.
Do you know boys and girls that we all have a problem which is bigger than the one that Grenada had? Our problem is sin. Sin is anything that we think, say or do that does not please God. Sin causes us to want to go our own way instead of God’s way.
Isaiah 53:6 (a) says, “all we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way.” Everyone is born with a sinful nature. As soon as they started asking for independence, some people began to do a lot of bad things in the country. Some even shot and killed others. Do you know why people did these bad things? Some other examples of sin are lying, stealing, hating others, cursing bad words, and murder.
If we allow it, sin can control us and make us unhappy too. When sin controls us, we are separated from God and God must punish sin. The punishment for sin is being separated from God forever. Even the kind and friendly Grenadian people were born wanting to sin. But, they also wanted to find a way to build their country.
One day some of Grenada’s politicians got together to figure out a way to solve that problem. After many meetings and planning, they decided to send a delegation of men to England to ask the Queen for Grenada’s independence. The delegation was led by Mr. Eric Matthew Gairy.
Mr. Gairy was a young and brave Grenadian leader who was always speaking on behalf of the poor and black people.
Mr. Gairy loved his people and his country so much that he travelled to England to speak with the Queen and her Government. How about you? Do you love your country? What do you think you can do to make your country the best place on earth? Do you think you love your Grenadian family so much that you will die for them?
When Mr. Gairy got to England, I am sure that he was impressed with the gold and riches of the palace. Maybe he wished that he could have stayed there and made the palace his home. But, he did not belong to the palace. Do you know why? He was not part of the Queen’s royal family.
What about you – would you like to be part of a royal family and live someday in a beautiful mansion?
If you had believed in Jesus as your Saviour, then you are already part of God’s royal family! One day He will take you to live with Him in His royal home! And even better, while you are on earth, sin does not have control over you! You might be struggling with a particular sin like lying or stealing. Whenever you have a problem, just talk to God about it.
Thank Him for his perfect plan for you. Thank Him that you can talk to Him anytime. Ask Him to help you with your problem and trust him to help you. You can also pray for others who you know have a problem.
Mr. Gairy was helping Grenadians to solve their problem. After weeks of heated discussions with Queen Elizabeth and her Government officials, Grenada was granted its independence. England no longer controlled this beautiful Spice Island. Grenada was now a new and free nation on February 7th, 1974. From that day, Mr. Eric Matthew Gairy became a Grenadian hero. He was a liberator. Some even called him their saviour because of all the good things that he had done for them. He was also Grenada’s first Prime Minister.
Grenadians then designed their own national flag and wrote their own anthem and pledge. They also were able to choose their own leader without the Queen telling them what to do. Many people were happy that Mr. Gairy helped solve their problem by going to England for Grenada’s independence.
Just like Mr. Eric Matthew Gairy and his men found a way to gain Grenada’s freedom from Great Britain, God made a way to solve the problem of sin. Man did not need to have quarrels and arguments to be free from sin! God provided His Son, Jesus, to be the Liberator!
John 3: 16 says that God loves us so much that he sent his only Son, Jesus to die for our sins. Jesus is God’s perfect Son. That means, he has no sin. Jesus has never done anything wrong. God sent his perfect Son to earth to take the punishment for our sins. Jesus is a bigger hero than any man can be!
1Cor. 15:3, 4 tells us that Jesus Christ died for our sins, he was buried, and that he rose from the grave on the third day. Jesus was crucified on a cross. Jesus shed his blood on the cross, to wash away our sins. Because Jesus died and rose again, we can have eternal life and be free from sin’s control!
God loves you so much that he has provided a way to solve your problem of sin. You have read about that way today. Jesus, God’s Son, came from heaven to earth, died on the cross, and rose again to take the punishment for your sins so that you don’t have to be separated from God.
Those who believe in God’s Son, Jesus, will not be controlled by their sinful nature. They will become a new and free person on the inside. John 8:36 says, “So, if the Son sets you free, you are free indeed.’ You have been set free from sin! He can be your Hero, your Saviour today.
If you choose to believe in Jesus and what He did for you, today, you can become a part of God’s family! He will forgive your sins and make you a brand-new person on the inside. You will then become a part of God’s royal family! And when you die, you will go to live with God, in heaven, in a beautiful mansion!
You can talk to God and tell Him that you believe in Jesus and what He did for you on the cross. Tell Him that you want to be a part of His family! He will hear your prayer and you will be His child.
Clare Adams