“This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” (Romans 3:22-24 NIV)
God’s grace is waiting for your acceptance. Each day His mercies are new. You have the choice to accept His gift, or reject it. We all reject God’s grace at some time or another. We don’t feel like we’re worthy of the gift, therefore we can’t accept it. But that isn’t true. We may not deserve grace, but we can still receive it. The truth is, Jesus died for you. His actions were grace filled for you and me. He died so we could live free from the constraints of this world. In Him we find life anew. But not until we accept the gift Jesus gave us.
God’s grace is waiting for your acceptance.
I’m listening to a book titled, “Help, Thanks, Wow” by Anne Lamont. The book is about prayer. Anne talks about our need for prayer, to believe in a higher power. A recent Gallup Poll found 87% of people believe in God. The three prayers people pray the most, according to Lamont: help, thanks, wow! In order for us to have a prayer relationship with God, we have to accept these three truths:
“We are so ruined. We are so loved. We are in charge of so little.” Anne Lamont
To receive God’s grace, we need to be honest with ourselves. We need to understand our circumstances so we can realistically respond to them. I understand, I am a sinner. I will continue to sin as long as I live. Sinning is part of the human condition. But I am also thoroughly loved by God. His love came from heaven and rescued a sinner like me. In His grace, I give authority to Him. I trust His will for my life. I know He is in control of what I can’t control. The same truth that applies to my life, applies to your life.
When we accept God’s grace for our lives, we take ourselves off the hook. Fish flail wildly when hooked. Sometimes they manage to free themselves, but most of the time they don’t. Once caught, freedom is difficult. We can feel caught on the hook of life. But we can, through prayer and acceptance, let ourselves off the hook.
“Prayer is when we take ourselves off the hook and put God on the hook, which is where He should be.” Priest Bill Rankin
Pray right now and accept God’s gift of grace for your life. Put Him on the hook, see what happens.
Question of the Day:
Have you accepted God’s gift yet?
Further Reading: 1 Chronicles 22:1-23:32 NIV, Romans 3:9-31 NIV, Psalm 12 NIV, Proverbs 19:13-14 NIV
