carry Grace
I have a friend who once said, “I carry the grace of the gospel in cupped hands like water. I can barely grasp it.” And the truth was and is, in her humility, she does carry it like water – spilling it on all in her path.
Pride
So often, I have not offered grace in the measure in which I have received grace. But many times, I have pridefully judged– without connection or relationship – those who look different, act different, believe differently, and those whose journey in life may have been far different than my own.
Saved by Grace
Pride can make us forget that our good, conservative, lifestyle does not save us, and our good works do not save us. We are not saved because we grew up in church and still attend, and we are not saved because we give to missions or the poor and needy. How often have I forgotten that I too am a sinner? … And I still forget.
Scripture
The apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:4-9, But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace, you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace, you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
But God
But God!! Those two words change everything!
But God, rich in mercy, saved us by His gift of grace! And Grace – that unmerited favor from God – is the good news of the gospel!
Raising Cupped Hands
When I see that my worth is not in what I do, who I know, or who likes me; when I realize I cannot earn with good deeds that which I so greatly need; when I finally see that I cannot fix my own brokenness; then in desperation I lift my cupped hands and stand in wonder when they are filled. As my cupped hands are filled, grace is poured out on me like abundant water flowing from an endless source. I have come to this place, again and again, and I have learned that it is broken vessels that overflow, spill, and pour out grace.
Spilling Grace
I have not done this well. How about you? How do you carry the gospel? Do you, like me, pridefully desire articulate speech, and enticing words before you attempt to carry the gospel at all? Or does grace flow from those broken places where your heart has held sorrow, disappointment, regret, or pain?
Prayer
Lord, help our lives to ‘spill over’ with grace as we remember the grace we have been given and enable us to carry the gospel like water!