I love grace.
I was born on a Tuesday, so according to the old rhyme that means I am full of grace.
Since I may be a bit awkward, I suspect that this has to be grace of the spiritual kind.
I’ve always said that all Christians struggle with one of two things, We either struggle with forgiveness or grace. Forgiveness because we can’t let go of what we have done and believe in a God who never looks at it again once confessed, or grace because we feel so easily forgiven that we don’t hate sin all that much. I’m in that latter group.
It’s an odd balance – to hate sin, but still know it’s all forgiven.
My ADD mind makes it almost impossible to hold onto a million rules that I am supposed to follow. Add onto that the context in which those rules were written and apply, and my mind almost explodes.
Grace is a gift where I can relax and enjoy my faith. I tend to focus on those that God says are key. “Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength” and “love your neighbor as yourself “. If I’m focusing on those, I have time for little else. Plus I don’t get discouraged by all the ways I fall short. I just engage and re-engage on the important things.
But when I do screw those up, there is the gift of grace. God knowing it’s impossible for me to be the “Good Christian” (I detest that phrase, by the way) and and saying “We’ve got you covered.”
Grace is the gift that tells us we can acknowledge our mistakes and move forward, knowing we are completely loved and forgiven. In spite of everything.
“…Grace means there is nothing I can do to make God love me more, and nothing I can do to make God love me less. It means that I, even I who deserve the opposite, am invited to take my place at the table in God’s family.”
― Philip Yancey, What’s So Amazing About Grace
In the Box, Out of the Box 