SO MUCH MORE
I learnt the worldly definition of Grace long before I experienced the biblical definition. I remember a time in my teenage years, when I was far from God, stumbling upon a blog post where a christian woman wrote about what grace meant to her and I was confused when smoothness, elegance and saying a prayer before dinner weren’t mentioned. As it turns out grace can be a tricky thing to articulate and hard to put a finger on. It plays a fundamental part in the big things of faith and salvation but can be shown in the littlest things; like a sweet unknowing text or coffee from a friend on a day you really needed it. If I could put things as simply as possible, the Lisa definition of grace would be “Undeserved blessings and kindness because of a faithful God”. Choosing to live a christian life does not exempt us from difficult times (John 16:33). In these times some of my go to’s are to declare scriptures, remember the times God has already come through for me, pray, fast and know my authority in Christ. These things always hold a lot of power and by comparison my problems begin to seem insignificant. But, if I’m being honest, when the breakthrough is delayed or the thing I was afraid of becomes a reality even the strength of these can begin to wane at times and lose some of their power. When this happens it can seem that I am out of options, things look final, disappointment surrounds me and remaining faithful can feel exhausting. If I’m being honest it’s during these times that in desperation I am tempted to take my eyes off Jesus, put myself first, and try things my own way.
But grace meets me in that moment and as I turn to God I hear a whisper in my soul
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).
It brings peace that, considering my circumstances, surpasses all understanding (Philippians 4:7), and I hold close the undeniable promise that even in the worst situations when things look like failure and loss, his grace will be sufficient to get me through whatever I have to walk through. His Grace will bridge the gap of weakness and shortcomings on my part and get me to the other side. It seems like a paradox but quite simply it’s grace that allows our weaknesses to be one of the precursors to experiencing the power of our almighty and all powerful father. This sums up grace to me which is so much more… but I can still boil down to “Undeserved blessings and kindness because of a faithful God”.
The irony is not lost on me that some 15 years later, things have done a full circle and here I am writing a blog post on grace that may be being read by someone who is not yet familiar with the subject. If that’s you, can I ask you to bring this to God and ask for clarity. Grace is a gift and a friend waiting patiently to be met and experienced, and I believe a greater understanding of grace will give you a greater understanding of Jesus and the love he has for you.