Tuesday, April 2, 2013

The Grace Gift

Grace.
It's a word and concept that anyone who has grown in or around church has heard countless times.

It's so abstract but yet so concrete.
It is pivotal to everything we believe as Christians and a vital element to extend to a hurting world as we attempt to live as Jesus did.

This past week, I was helping a precious lady at work choose a gift.  We looked at several goodies and she settled on a beautiful jewelry piece with the word "Grace" engraved on it.  As I stood by for her to think and to answer questions, she threw out a question I didn't see coming.

"What exactly is grace?"

Um. Woah. Ok.

My answer?

Grace, to me, is defined in context of my relationship with Jesus... Grace is like an outstretched hand that is continually available to us.  It is a soft place to land in the moments when we need forgiveness and for the love and gentleness of a Savior to put our hurting hearts back together.

One struggle I have with this gift of grace is battling the idea that it can be earned or, likewise, lost... It's in the moments when I need to encounter the healing grace of Jesus the most, that I am usually the most convinced it's not available to me.

I rattle off a list of countless things I've done wrong in the past days and convince myself that - yep. The grace of the Father isn't mine for the taking today.  I've failed too big. I've fallen too far.

Nothing is farther from the truth friends...

The gift of grace is ours always and has an infinite shelf life.  It can't be earned and it is NEVER withheld from us as punishment.  Rest in the truth that the grace of Jesus is complete, and full, and ALWAYS yours to encounter.

"My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness...:
2 Corinthians 12:9


1 comment:

  1. Amen. Glory to God. I feel this way about the Love of the Lord too, like, well this day, I am unlovable because I haven't acted lovable.. He is Amazing, Glorious, Eternal.

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