"I do not understand the mystery of Grace - only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us."
The apostle Paul said, "Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus."
I just returned from ten days away. Most of us would covet ten days away from the normal hectic life, and I certainly was - but it didn't turn out to be free of the hectic. My wife had started the trip with a nasty cough, but it turned into a bronchitis and stay there during the entire ten days...even to now three days after returning home. I was good for the first 6 days, but then a mysterious "bug" hit and I found myself huddled in bed early in the evening fighting off chills with four layers of clothes, followed by a 1300 mile car ride that was spread over two days, with frequent stops for diarrhea! Uugh.
You know the words: "We'll never forget that trip."
The problem is, we'd like to.
The reality is, we've all had these kind of experiences.
You know what I mean, when the greatest of your hopes turns into mush and the reality is that it just wasn't what you thought it would be.
I'm describing lots of things in our lives now, and I'll limit this to the main issue....
What do we do when life hands us the "I didn't expect this"?
We have a young couple in our church, with the cutest little seven month old you can stand. Only problem is they discovered she has a failing liver and even though she's only seven months old, she'll need a liver transplant by the time she's two and then live on anti-rejection medicine for most, if not all, of the rest of her life... Uugh!
Now, when you compare a 1300 mile car trip with multiple bathroom breaks with your child needing a liver transplant, it all comes into perspective.
The nuisance and annoyances, even downright uncomfortable things, don't belong with the "O God, you got to help us" day by day things.
Perspective....it's a good thing to gain.
Like when you're hauling the vacuum cleaner up the stairs, or carrying the fourth load of laundry down the stairs...there's part of you that naturally thinks, "when will this all end", and the other part that whispers, "thank you Lord I can carry, walk, and work, because my friend is in a hospital bed fighting cancer and just trying to remain alive."
Which gets us back to the text: "Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus."
Every day this needs to occur.
Every day I need a fresh dose of the Spirit of God infusing God's grace within.
Every day I need to grow in that grace, Paul said that also.
Grace happens...it's present tense, and it's at work if we allow it to permeate us with that "God-given" perspective that is so often needed when things aren't going as expected.
Remember this:
That same work God did
through Christ
long ago
on a cross
is the work God does
through Christ
right now
in you.
Let's be people of that grace - and travel with it on the journey every day God has you on.
Peace
The apostle Paul said, "Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus."
I just returned from ten days away. Most of us would covet ten days away from the normal hectic life, and I certainly was - but it didn't turn out to be free of the hectic. My wife had started the trip with a nasty cough, but it turned into a bronchitis and stay there during the entire ten days...even to now three days after returning home. I was good for the first 6 days, but then a mysterious "bug" hit and I found myself huddled in bed early in the evening fighting off chills with four layers of clothes, followed by a 1300 mile car ride that was spread over two days, with frequent stops for diarrhea! Uugh.
You know the words: "We'll never forget that trip."
The problem is, we'd like to.
The reality is, we've all had these kind of experiences.
You know what I mean, when the greatest of your hopes turns into mush and the reality is that it just wasn't what you thought it would be.
I'm describing lots of things in our lives now, and I'll limit this to the main issue....
What do we do when life hands us the "I didn't expect this"?
We have a young couple in our church, with the cutest little seven month old you can stand. Only problem is they discovered she has a failing liver and even though she's only seven months old, she'll need a liver transplant by the time she's two and then live on anti-rejection medicine for most, if not all, of the rest of her life... Uugh!
Now, when you compare a 1300 mile car trip with multiple bathroom breaks with your child needing a liver transplant, it all comes into perspective.
The nuisance and annoyances, even downright uncomfortable things, don't belong with the "O God, you got to help us" day by day things.
Perspective....it's a good thing to gain.
Like when you're hauling the vacuum cleaner up the stairs, or carrying the fourth load of laundry down the stairs...there's part of you that naturally thinks, "when will this all end", and the other part that whispers, "thank you Lord I can carry, walk, and work, because my friend is in a hospital bed fighting cancer and just trying to remain alive."
Which gets us back to the text: "Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus."
Every day this needs to occur.
Every day I need a fresh dose of the Spirit of God infusing God's grace within.
Every day I need to grow in that grace, Paul said that also.
Grace happens...it's present tense, and it's at work if we allow it to permeate us with that "God-given" perspective that is so often needed when things aren't going as expected.
Remember this:
That same work God did
through Christ
long ago
on a cross
is the work God does
through Christ
right now
in you.
Let's be people of that grace - and travel with it on the journey every day God has you on.
Peace
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