Once in a very blue moon, a song comes along and grabs hold of my heart, brings me to my knees, steers my eyes towards heaven and rips away from me all the tears I've been holding inside. I was recently graced to hear such a masterpiece. This song perfectly describes my relationship with God's Graces, especially in the midst of harsh trials.
I know He wants the best for me. I know His blessings are mine. I know He gave everything for me... and I secretly expect all these blessings to be a string of good news, gently sprinkled throughout my life.
But what if that wasn't the way God works ?
'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise
...
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy'
Grace. It's also in the raindrops, the tears and the sleepless nights. Thank you Laura.
In Lam 3:23, God tells us that His wondrous Graces are renewed every morning. This prompted the following question: what exact Graces does He have in provision for me every day ? Does the Bible get more specific about things God does for me every day, even if I deserve nothing ? In short: yes.
Every day, these Graces are there for me:
I am led and guided Ex 13:21-22, 40:38, Num 14:14, Neh 9:19, Ps 78:14
I am watched over 1Ki 8:29, 2Chr 6:20
I am at peace when I sleep Ps 4:8
I am accompanied Ps 23:6
I am shown my sins Ps 32:3-4
I am protected Ps 121:6
I am being accused and defended Rev 12:10
Grace, it's every day.
She sees beyond everything the mirror reflects to my broken state, my hurting heart, my aching soul, my unspoken needs. Her ears listen to me when I have too much and nothing to say. Her tongue speaks words of peace, love and truth that fill me. Her heart gladly rejoices with mine and breaks into pieces with mine as well.
Her hands, ah her wonderful hands. They touch me when sin makes me a leper. They pick me up when I am crippled by my desires. They grab me when I am sinking in my sea of doubt. They give me sight when I am blinded by pride. They feed my soul when I am hungry for answers. They water my heart when it is an arid desert of callosity. They raise me from the death of my own actions.
Her feet run to embrace me and shower me when I come back from my shameful deeds. She runs away from sin and yet stands by me in mine, waiting and encouraging me to run away with her and Truth, her partner.
When I was wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked, she was all I had left. Her undeserved gifts are sufficient, rich, abundant, exceeding, manifold, contagious and glorious. They are renewed every single morning and they are free.
She paid the ultimate price for me, showed me the way to eternal joy and walks with me every day until I get there.
She is Grace.
- GraceGuy
It is impossible to be able to imagine the height, the depth, the width and the length of Grace. It surpasses anything one could imagine, purposely.
But sometimes, if I look with the right eyes, God's creation provides hints of His Grace - some minute glimpse that reminds us of His irrational love and inspires us to get closer to Him.
This video does just that. I could not help but think of Grace watching this.
"Before we see the cross as something done for us, we need to see the cross as something done by us"
- John Stott
I asked him to heal me and feed me without any intention to follow him
I tested his teachings and refused to let go of my beliefs
I expected him to liberate us from the Romans
I betrayed him for 30 pieces of silver
I broke bread with him at his last supper
I fled when the soldiers came to take him
I kissed him to show the soldiers who he was
I took him into custody and brought him before the high priest Caiaphus
I put him on an illegal trial with false witnesses
I brought him to the governor Pilate
I questioned him about the accusations
I brought him to Herod and returned him to Pilate
I let the crowd decide his fate and washed my hands of it
I wanted the liberation of a known murderer instead of his
I sentenced him to death to appease the crowd and my ego
I beat and flogged him multiple times with whips
I spat on him
I made a crown of thorns and placed it harshly on his head
I made him carry his cross up the mount and pushed him to the ground
I put his hands on the cross and nailed him to it
I put his feet together on the wooden block at the base of the cross and nailed them to it
I lifted the cross and slipped it in the hole
I divided his clothes and cast lots for it
I placed a sign above his head
I give him vinegar to drink
I pierced his side and saw blood and water spill out
I looked on approvingly, content of his death
I mocked his lack of power, even while I was hanging on a cross beside him
I denied ever knowing him, three times
I doubted his messianic claims
I heard him say ridiculous words to his supposed father
I saw him draw his last breath
I took the limp body off the cross
I placed it in a tomb and rolled a massive stone to close it
I guarded the tomb and prevented anyone from reaching it
I kept the empty tomb a secret
I persecuted those who thought he was risen
I was there that first Easter. My sins did all of this. And yet, through faith, His Grace covered me.
- GraceGuy
There are many instances when God is described as a graceful God in the Old Testament. Since it is a common misconception that the Old Testament God is solely a God of Law and Justice, I thought it important to list out all the verses that contradict this notion.
It all started when God showed Himself and described His own characteristics to Moses on Mount Sinai.
Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God,
- compassionate and gracious,
- slow to anger,
- and abounding in lovingkindness and truth;
- who keeps lovingkindness for thousands,
- who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin;
- yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished,
- visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.
Exodus 34:6-7
This declaration was often repeated by other authors in the Old Testament. Enjoy.
Grace. It's been there since the beginning.
Gift that is undeserved
Love that pays the price
Faith that demands a decision
Justice that is satisfied
Freedom from the slavery of sin
Obedience that remembers the cost
Forgiveness that covers all
Compassion that gets its hands dirty
Light that shows the way
Prayer that is heard
Glory that is cause for praise
Hope that does not fail
Strength that rises to the occasion
Satisfaction that quenches all desires
Blessings that are renewed daily
Riches beyond imagination
- GraceGuy
A hater is someone who is jealous and envious and spends all their time trying to make you look small so they can look tall.
They are very negative people to say the least. Nothing is ever good enough!
When you make your mark, you will always attract some haters...
That's why you have to be careful with whom you share your blessings and your dreams, because some folk can't handle seeing you blessed...
It's dangerous to be like somebody else... If God wanted you to be like somebody else, He would have given you what He gave them! Right?
You never know what people have gone through to get what they have...
The problem I have with haters is that they see my glory, but they don't know my story...
If the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence, you can rest assured that the water bill is higher there too!
We've all got some haters among us!
Some people envy you because you can:
a) Have a relationship with God
b) Light up a room when you walk in
c) Start your own business
d) Tell a man / woman to hit the curb (if he / she isn't about the right thing)
e) Raise your children without both parent being in the home
Haters can't stand to see you happy.
Haters will never want to see you succeed.
Most of our haters are people who are supposed to be on our side.
How do you handle your undercover haters?
You can handle these haters by:
1. Knowing who you are & who your true friends are (VERY IMPORTANT!!)
2. Having a purpose to your life:
Purpose does not mean having a job. You can have a job and still be unfulfilled.
A purpose is having a clear sense of what God has called you to be.
Your purpose is not defined by what others think about you.
3. By remembering what you have is by divine prerogative and not human manipulation.
Fulfill your dreams! You only have one life to live...when its your time to leave this earth, you 'want' to be able to say, 'I've lived my life and fulfilled 'my' dreams... Now I'm ready to go HOME!
When God gives you favor, you can tell your haters,
'Don't look at me...Look at Who is in charge of me...'
Pass this to all of your family & friends who you know are not hating on you including the person who sent it to you. If you don't get it back, maybe you called somebody out! Don't worry about it, it's not your problem, it's theirs.. Just pray for them, that their life can be as fulfilled as yours! Watch out for Haters...BUT most of all don't become a HATER!
I often marvel at Jesus' ability to see the heart, the intent and the thoughts of the person in front of Him. This ability, a unique characteristic of God, was prevalent in the Old Testament as well. For example, when Samuel searched for the next king after Saul, The Lord told him ' Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.' (1 Samuel 16:7) Jesus really saw them, saw who they were and what they were thirsting for. He saw their quest. With those who humbly and genuinely searched the truth, He graced them with His time, His knowledge, His healing, His love. He could judge their humility in 'real-time' and dispense Grace to those who needed it. There are too many examples of Jesus seeing people truly as they were: naked, desperate, sick, humiliated, curious, empty, hungry, thirsty. Of them: the disciples at their calling, Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman at the well, the centurion, the thousands of followers and the multitudes, the widow of Nain, Jairus, Peter on the water, the Gentile woman, the blind man in Bethsaida, the adulterous woman, Mary and Martha, Zacchaeus, the paralytic lowered from the roof, Lazarus, the one leper who came back, the rich young ruler, the blind man near Jericho, all of Jerusalem, the thief on the cross, the weeping women at the cross, Mary Magdalene at the tomb, the disciples at His appearing, etc. One particular telling example is the forgiven woman, told in Luke 7:36-50. Simon, the Pharisee, saw what we would have seen: uncleanness, sin, a wasted life. Jesus saw the worth of her soul, the warmth of her sacrifice, the willingness of her service which brought her to the withdrawal of her sin. Ironically, Simon did not realize the depth of his own sin and his lack of love resulted in a lack of appreciation of God's forgiveness. There were unfortunately ample 'Simons' in His time. Jesus saw hardened hearts and pride in those who seeked only to discredit Him, hurt Him, discount Him, trap Him, kill Him. He could see their insidious intentions and was often able to respond in kind (link to Pharisees). Of them: the Devil, the Pharisees, the scribes, the Sadduceens, Judas, the moneychangers in the temple, the followers who wanted more signs. So what about me ? It's great to see Jesus' ability in action, but how can I emulate Him ? This strange person in front of me: what is the intent ? the heart ? the thoughts ? Here's what I discovered was the way to get to know them: - Find the time to be completely available
- Ask open-ended questions
- Listen intently to their answers
- Repeat to make sure I understand
- Admit I don't know the solution
- Listen to them some more
- Connect with their emotion, no matter how irrational it sounds
- Genuinely care
- ... And did I mention listening ?
Are they frustrated, irritated, overwhelmed, doubting, dissapointed, searching, discouraged, angry, worried, insecure, carrying guilt, unworthy, desperate, fearful, powerless ? Why ? and how can I listen more ? It's at that point that Jesus gave Grace. And it's only then that I can give Grace.
A common yet erronneous thought about Grace is that is 'easier' than the Law that Moses was given. We tend to think that since we are given unmerited favour, we have a larger freedom of action than those poor souls who had the Mosaic Law. We hear quotes like 'Thank God, we are under Grace and not the Law, so I can do this anyway' or 'The Law isn't important, we have Grace now, so be free'. Without explicitely saying it, we promote a certain laxism towards the principles God gives us, simply because of what we think Grace does for us. We could not be more wrong. In Matthew 5, while in the midst of the Sermon on the Mount, Christ exposed that lie by showing how Grace digs much deeper than the Law. - Under the law, I would be a murderer if I took a life. Under Grace, I am a murderer if I hate my neighbour and verbally abuse him. - Under the law, I was an adulterer if have sexual relations outside of marriage. Under Grace, I am an adulterer if I covet and desire to do so. Under the law, my actions determined how good I was. Under Grace, my motives, my intent and my heart are what defines me. Grace penetrates the deepest recesses of my soul and my secret thoughts. Grace is about who I am inside, not what I do on the outside. The Forerunner Commentary aptly wrote ' Men's governments deal with the end of the act, Christ deals with the beginning. Jesus changed the law's restraint from the act to the motive. For the Christian, merely abstaining from the act is not sufficient. Jesus imposes the positive obligation of the spirit of the law on him. He seeks to prevent crimes of violence by rooting out the attitudes and drives in a person's character that make him kill. The New Covenant law searches the heart without doing away with the Old Covenant letter.' The bar is much higher with Grace. But the good news is that Grace empowers us to clear that bar. And the pleasure is fuller and the glory of it... eternal.
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