Today's Scripture:
1 Corinthians 15:10
But by the grace of
God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked
harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.
Today's Thought:
I remember first coming across this verse and having one of
those "aha moments." Paul's
observation brought to me a new understanding of what grace is - not just God
forgiving me but God empowering me. We
don’t work to obtain grace, but once we receive grace we begin to work. Grace, true grace, is never without
effect. Grace always changes us. Grace always puts us into action!
When I look at Paul's life and his untiring service I wonder
how he had all that energy and all that passion. He says it all emanated from his understanding
of the riches of God's grace in his life.
It's like the gratitude you would feel toward someone who saved your
life. You would want to do anything you
could to express to that person how grateful you are for what they have
done. When we understand what God's
grace has done for us we instinctively become agents of that grace wanting to
share with others the good news of salvation.
One exercise I find helpful in my life is to imagine where I
would be without God's grace. I can’t
imagine not having the hope and joy that is mine because of God's place in my
life. When I consider that, I find
myself more appreciative of God's mercy and more motivated to participate in
the process of sharing that grace with the world around me.
Today's Prayer:
Graceful God, may I ever be aware of your mercy to me. May I allow your gift to overwhelm me with
thanksgiving and appreciation and empower me to be a vessel of that grace to
those around me. In the name of Jesus I
pray. Amen.
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