Saturday, May 19, 2012

Grace Today

Is it just me (because I'm his mother), or is my youngest son really funny enough to be rich and famous if he were a stand-up comedian?  (OK, I'm glad he's not living that transitory lifestyle).  Since I am not on Facebook, he sends me his statis updates by email--I am shocked that already this technology is old-fashioned!
One of his recent posts read:  "Matt would like more self-esteem, but he probably doesn't deserve it."  Wow, my son for sure, but he was only kidding!
Long ago my husband, Ron, and I were in the audience of a talk on self-esteem and the speaker built dramatically toward the quote: "God doesn't make junk".  I leaned into Ron and whispered:  "I know that; I got that way on my own."  This was not a humble admission of my own human frailty, but a guilt-ridden cry of my own in ability to accept the grace of God.  It took years of spiritual growth to embrace the inconceivable mercy lavished upon me by a God who was willing to pay any price to extend forgiveness to me.
"...those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ."  (Romans 5:17)  God's gift is abundant--so abundant that I insult the cross by thinking that Christ's death is not sufficient to cover my sins.  I reign today--it's not a tentative future promise.  Today I am "seated with him in the heavenly realms." (Eph. 2:6)  Today I am living eternal life, not waiting for it to begin when I die.  "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." (John 17:3)  Today I live in the grace of God; my eternity has begun and I reign!

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