This morning I had this impression upon my heart about my post called ‘Choose Grace’. I thought, do others know what I mean when I say choose grace? Do I even understand what I mean by grace? Does my post even make sense? My mind was just reeling with questions. However, the questions led me to God’s word and researching what others have said about ‘grace’. Reading these things helped me to better understand and explain it myself. This may be lengthy, and a slight rant, but bear with me if you will.
First and foremost, Grace is the undeserved favor of God, bestowed upon those who choose to believe, through the sacrifice and resurrection of Christ, His Son, and our Lord and Savior. It is not because of anything we have done to deserve it, but what God did for us out of love for His creation.
John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life” This is grace.
Grace (how I understand it) is a transforming characteristic from the love of God. It causes us to look at things beyond the flesh. It creates in us a desire to love and see love. When we choose grace we choose to hold on to the truth of God’s grace bestowed upon us. The trivialities of life are temporary and they change as fast as the hands on a clock. The thing that matters is the eternity waiting for us beyond this life. This is why we choose grace. How we process and react to the momentary irritations, interruptions and circumstances of this life prepares us for the life ahead. Choosing grace means to set your eyes and heart upon Jesus. Grace molds us into Christ-likeness.
God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2: 8-10
My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20
When we focus on our current mood, emotions, circumstances, and disappointments, we focus on self. We cannot be of use to God if we are concerned too much with self. We must surrender it all to Him. Let Him mold our thinking, renew our minds and infuse our lives with His unending grace. Choosing grace allows us to see past our preconceived notions and see people as precious and problems as opportunities. We are too self focused and busy to take the time or spend the energy working through something. We want the quick and easy way out, and if there isn’t one we don’t want to be bothered. Failure to choose grace, results in bitterness. When we compare our lives to others, when we dwell on the issues we face, or on people who have injured us, these things impact our hearts and our lives.
Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. Hebrews 12: 14-15
We are new creations in Christ. Let us live out this truth in our everyday ordinary moments. Let us choose joy, choose to show love, choose to hand it over to God, and choose a life of grace. Let us be fully aware of this truth – we are not God! Only God is God, and quite often we need to get out of His way and allow Him to work through us, not around us.
Polly Frances 