On Grace, Everywhere

See God everywhere. Be on the lookout for His gifts, His grace. And once you start seeing, more are exposed. It begins with a sprinkle, then steady drops, then it pours. God pours out so much blessing that there is not room enough for it. 

And all He wants is our thanks. To notice what He's doing. Be eager to find Him at work. It's a beautiful game of hide and seek we play with our Lord. 

It may be hard at first. How can there be blessing, grace, when we don't have enough money to pay the bills. Or when a grandmother dies. Or when she's run so far from Jesus she denies Him. 

How? 

In the darkest hour, when we feel most vulnerable, God Almighty scoops us into His loving arms. It is in despair that we search for Him, recognize our need for Him. Yet He is always there. 

So notice Him in the everyday. In the laundry time, the lullabies sung, the lattes shared with friends.

He is in all, with grace. For you. 

On Grace Speech

 Colossians 4:6 

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you many know how to answer everyone. 

On Wednesday, our young adult small group spent a lot of time working through the meaning of this verse and discussing its implications for our lives. The conclusions we drew were insightful and have been stirring in my spirit ever since. 

My understanding of the word "grace" is receiving something you don't deserve. God the Father showed us the fullest extent of his grace when he turned his back on his son, Jesus Christ, who bore ALL the sins of the world on his shoulders as the life dripped from his beaten body on that rugged cross. Human beings, as his creation, were given the choice to sin or follow our Creator. We chose separation from God rather than communion with him, but in all his mercy, God offered an alternative. Wereceived the gift we never could have earned--total forgiveness and full and eternal life. 

Having my conversation always be filled with grace starts there--at the cross. I must be constantly connected with that sacrifice, the redemption granted me from that place where my Savior died. If my mind is meditating on the cross, on his grace, my heart will be overflowing with the same. 

Every word I exchange with another should flow from the place of grace--particularly if that person "deserves" nothing other than frustration, anger, disrespect. In those moments when I have been wronged, humiliated, frustrated, exasperated, annoyed, or hurt, I am to season my words with salt--making them delicious to the recipient. The sentences flowing from my lips should not be the same as the world's. Those who don't follow Jesus believe in retaliation, anger, and revenge. But Jesus showed us a different way. The way of Grace. 

To be seasoned with salt means our words go from being normal, typical, similar to the rest of the population's, to be tasty, memorable, enjoyable, blessed. Salt keeps food preserved, fresh. Our words shouldn't be filled with bitterness, rage, or malice, but with the life-giving, sustaining, savory salt of grace. 

On Eucharisteo

"And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them..." (Luke 22:19)

Just hours before Jesus was about to give up his life, He sits down to give thanks. He gave thanks?!  

Ann Voskamp, in her new book One Thousand Gifts, shares a revelation that literally changes her life and is in the process of changing mine. She digs into the root Greek word behind "thanks." It is eucharisteo and the contents of this word are unbelievable. 

Charis. Grace

Eucharisteo. Thanksgiving

Chara. Joy. 

The joy of life--life to the full--comes only after thanksgiving for the grace, the gifts God has given. We have been given the gift of salvation, and we have been ushered into the family of God, but have we yet experienced the full measure of life that Jesus came to bring us? Have we come to Him in the spirit of thanksgiving day in and day out, thus welcoming the miracle that is chara joy?

Ann takes readers through a new prospective of the story of the leper Jesus healed in Luke 17:11-19. We have all read, perhaps in awe, that Jesus healed all 10 men afflicted with this debilitating disease. After this, ONE of the men rushes back to Jesus, praising God for his healing. He thanked Jesus.

But what comes next?

Jesus turns to the man and says, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well." (vs. 19).

But wasn't the man already healed? Why did Jesus tell him once again that he was made well?

Perhaps the secret to a full life lived in the grace of God lies in that one part of the story we never noticed before. Yes, the man was already healed of his disease. But when he came back and exclaimed his thankfulness to The Master, he was given the gift of complete healing--wellness encompassing every part of his life. By having faith and a true attitude of thanks, this man found the fullness of life--the real healing Jesus is looking to give.

It starts with the gifts God gives.
We offer our thanks.
And we receive that miracle of joy--the full life.  

These gifts are all around us. The light streaming in the window. The cold water in my glass. The cat napping on the pillow. My husband's deep breathing. The wind blowing as the dried leaves cling to the branches. We don't have to pack a bag and travel the world to see the beauty. Our lives are brimming with the gifts of our great God. Even though our days may be filled with dirty dishes and jammed schedules and heartbreak, we are called to eucharisteo. Yes, even in the hard times. 

"Thanksgiving is inherent to a true salvation experience; thanksgiving is necessary to live the well, whole, fullest life" (One Thousand Gifts, p. 39). Eucharisteo thanks precedes us experiencing our fullest salvation in Christ, being saved from the bitter, angry, resentful qualities of sinful living. 

Join me and (in)courage Bloom Book Club as we experience the miracle full life that flows from thanksgiving. 

One Thousand Gifts: Chapter Two from Bloom (in)courage on Vimeo.

On The Failure

oh....Dear........Father. My emotions are so raw right now. My thoughts are harried. My heart beats in a confused rhythm. The wounds still fresh. 

Sometimes I just don't know what to do with myself. My failures stack one on top of another, again and again, as if attempting to mimic the tower of Babel. Dumb idea, I know. But my sinful nature seems to definitely has a mind of its own--and a very powerful one at that. 

WHY, GOD, WHY do I keep doing the things I hate--the evil I see within me? Why do I cling so tightly to the Law of Sin and Death?

How is it possible to know the good I need to do, and even to WANT to do that good, but to fail to do it. 

Over.

and. 

Over.

again. 

But alas, I know the truth of the matter. I am sinful. I fail. I will keep failing. But I am not a FAILURE. My identity is found in You alone. 

What a wretched woman I am!! Who will rescue me from this body of death?! THANKS BE TO GOD! for it is through the grace given me by Jesus Christ our Lord.