Grace: It’s so good…and hard!
Grace…what we all want to receive yet find it so hard to give. Humph. Ashley reminds us why and how we can extend grace.
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 1 Corinthians 12:9
Grace “getting what we do not deserve”. I am a sinner. Jesus is perfect. He died so I might have a relationship with God in Heaven and not have to be separated from Him forever. He extended Grace to me. How often I forget this monumental and beautiful picture. That without Him there is no life. I mess up daily, yet He forgives me.
Why then is it so hard for me to extend grace to others? Well for starters – pride. Everyone likes to be right and when someone else messes up I take that as such a great opportunity to prove I’m right, right? Wrong. What a great opportunity to extend grace!
Here are two ways that just might be helpful reminders to extend grace:
- What if the roles were reversed? Nothing snaps me to it, quite like this question. When I was really little, my younger brother and I were playing in my room and he broke my Little Mermaid Snow Globe. My very favorite in the whole-wide-world, prize possession snow globe. That was all it took. I flew into a tizzy and screamed down the hall for mom, and she of course came running, thinking someone had broken a limb. As she evaluated the situation and my teary-eyed little brother stared at the floor I won’t forget what she said, “Ash, we know he didn’t do it on purpose. It was an accident. If you had broken his favorite thing would you want him to act like you are right now? Don’t you love him more than a snow globe?” BOOM. I looked over and realized how much I wouldn’t want to be in his position. How much I did love him more than a silly, snow globe? Grace. I want it. I need it. I should give it.
- Who is more important? The Bible calls us to put others before ourselves and love like Jesus. SO in any situation requiring us to extend grace to someone, we have to set our pride aside and put that person’s needs above ours. When we can look at someone who has wronged us and say, “I love you, anyway” what better picture of Jesus to our world?
When we truly understand our need for grace we can begin to show others grace the same way. Christ has shown me the most grace imaginable… given me life when I deserve death. Because I love Him and want to follow Him I now can extend grace to others.
Thank you, Jesus for your example and unending GRACE!
Camper Corner:
- What is grace and what is one way you can show grace at school today?
- Take a minute to thank God for sending His son for us and showing us grace that will never run out.
