grace

Grace: Not Just a Little, but a Lot

“A man may have too much money, or too much honour, but he cannot have too much grace . . . Thou needest much; seek much, and have much.” – C. H. Spurgeon

God is overflowingly generous. In fact, in The Message, John 1:16 reads this way, “We all live off his generous abundance, gift after gift after gift.” We cannot count the number of gifts God gives us – and they keep coming.

John tells us “He gives the Spirit without measure” (John 3:34). He doesn’t parcel out a little bit of the Spirit. He gives all of him to all of us who ask (Luke 11:13).

All of this is about grace. Grace is God showing his favor toward us – just because he wants to and can, not because we are worthy of it. In fact, he shows more grace when we are less worthy: Paul found God’s grace was perfected when he was weakest (2 Corinthians 12:9). James tells us God gives grace to the humble (James 4:6). When we can’t do something, God can. When we recognize our need, he intervenes with grace.

And not just a little grace. We read about the early Christians meeting together daily, taking care of each other’s needs, and telling others about the resurrection. Then we read, ” . . . and great grace was upon them all.” Not just grace, but great grace.

Do we need it? Yes! Do we recognize it when it comes? Sometimes. Let’s be on the lookout for God’s generous grace in our lives today. He loves it when we notice.

“But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you.” – 1 Peter 5:10

by

You have to ask.

“The Lord waits to be gracious to you . . . He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as He hears it, He answers you.” – Isaiah 38:18a and19b

God offers grace – his intervention on our behalf as a free, unearned gift. Don’t we all want that? 

Naaman, Syrian military officer, (1 Kings 5) came to Elijah because he had heard Elijah could heal him of his leprosy. He was willing to ask.

Elijah tells Naaman to wash seven times in the Jordan River and he would be well. The proud soldier objected. There were much better rivers in his hometown – why wash in the dirty Jordan? 

His aides talked some sense into him: Elijah is not asking much, they say, why not try it? Naaman reluctantly made his way to the Jordan River and dipped in it seven times. Not surprisingly, he came out cured of his disease.

Experiencing God’s grace in our lives seems to require two things: Recognizing our need and being willing to ask. Some of us have a hard time asking for help, but God wants us to ask. 

If we are proud, as Naaman was, we can find it hard to receive what God offers as a free, unearned gift. We’d rather not need God and his grace quite so much. But that is God’s way: Ask and receive. We don’t earn it. We can’t pay for it. We just receive.

What may be keeping God from showing us his grace? Maybe he’s waiting to hear our cry, to acknowledge our desperation for him.  

“The best place any Christian can ever be in is to be totally destitute and totally dependent upon God, and know it.”- Alan Redpath

#God’sgrace 

 

 

by

Seeing and Being Seen

DSCN1412

“I would rather walk with God in the dark than go alone in the light.” ~Mary Gardiner Brainard

Do you remember Hagar, Sarah’s maid? When she and Sarah had a confrontation, Hagar ran away. As she sat despairingly in the desert, God spoke to her, told her to go back to Sarah, and then gave her promises about the son she carried and the descendants who would follow. Hagar’s difficult circumstances had not changed, but after she met God, she saw everything in new light. Her response was “You are the God who sees me . . . I have now seen the One who sees me.” (Gen. 16:13b)

I thought back on my own life and remembered all the times that “the God who sees” was with me just as He was with Hagar. I thought of times of financial stress, family crises, job pressures, and health issues. He was present at every turn for me. Seeing His hand, even in retrospect, is powerful. “Lord, You see, You know, You do not run away. You stick by my side and are more powerful, more loving, more consistent, and closer than any human companion could possibly be. Thank You for coming close to me when I felt lost and alone.”

The God who sees is also the God who lets us see Him. As we do, we become aware of His provision, guidance, and intervention. For Hagar it was promises about Ishmael and his descendants and direction to go back to Sarah. For me it has been reassurance, understanding, opened pathways, restored relationships, and wisdom.

My life is still messy sometimes, and I am sure yours is too. I am learning to look for God in the middle of the mess – I know for sure He is there! And He’s there in your mess, too. Stop and look – He wants us to see Him!

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” (Matthew 5:8)