GOD'S GRACE FOR TODAY

 

God's Grace and You

GRACE PERSONIFIED

• The story of Jesus is a story of grace.  
• The theme of Jesus' life's purpose and His doings is fully-lived grace. 
• The spiritual already-lived past bespeaks of grace. 
• The spiritual future-joy promises abundant grace. 
• This spiritual present-moment infuses grace in the divinely awakened.

 ABOUT GRACE

I have spent much of the past fifteen years talking about love: Christ's love, God's love, our need for love, the need for loving others, and the importance of love in the world. Not enough have I devoted my thoughts to ponder the gift of grace given to us by God through Christ.

This week I've been reading a book by Charles Spurgeon about prayer, The Power of Prayer in a Believer's Life. He emphasizes how prayer is wrapped beautifully in grace. Another book I'm reading is by author Eugenia Price, The Burden Is Light: A Spiritual Autobiography. She shares her story of waywardness until the grace of God entered her life and changed her heart.

I was astounded the first time I read in My Utmost for His Highest that it is good for us to have difficult people in our lives. Who wants to be around difficult people? Not me. Yet grace is most apparent when it is applied as it is being lived out. Our lives are an example of this. God gave us undeserved grace. We were recipients of His grace. To live grace with difficult people means we approach the Source of all grace by allowing ourselves to be grace-filled through His divine mercy and grace. Then we will act accordingly to the ways of grace in the difficult situation. Our flesh roars to the surface more often than we care to admit, but it is soon overtaken by God's grace that lives in and through us.

Grace, besides love, is the great compelling and fulfilling of the spiritual reality in life and living. A true Christian is "living-grace" to the lost, unawakened world. Grace does not see division or hopelessness. Grace sees hope and life and resurrection in the small to big things.

It's all about grace. It's all about love. It's all about Christ. It's all about redemption. It's all about life and living through the new life that can be had in Christ Jesus. "Grace, grace, God's grace; Grace that will pardon and cleanse within."

 God’s grace is freely given, not duly earned.

APPLICATION

Every time we pray, the very act of praying, is in supplication of God's grace. Awareness of God's grace becomes a way of viewing life through the spiritual lens of grace. Your life alters when grace becomes your partner throughout the day. Conversations and actions are converted to spiritual happenings once this is realized fully in you. 

Annoyances become opportunities to extend grace, to live grace, to be grace to others. To do this well requires supernatural grace to flow freely in us, through God's enabling. Since God is grace, He can liberally give us grace, from out of which, we are, in turn, able to give forth His grace to others.

1. Do you have a difficult person in your life right now? (I do) 

2. Ask God's grace in your interactions with them; then watch what happens.

3. God will help us.