I mean really, where’s Grace in your life?
The kind of Grace you can’t take credit for. The gifts that come to you for no purpose or reason. The outcome of a situation that you have no say in claiming full credit for.
It’s moments like these that I am seeking as we start a new year. A new definition of Grace and further detachment from an obligated mindset.
A mindset where I no longer receive what I feel I deserve due to my behavior/conduct. A mindset that no longer forgets the core state of where humanity came from and still is, despite how hard we try and convince and cover up.
We can accomplish grand things when we put our minds to it. We can be achievers, builders, givers, owners and even lovers to a sense all while having an ‘expecting’ mind. You know the type of mind that doesn’t feel greatness when receiving a paycheck because well you worked for it and you get what you give.
Can you imagine a marriage where nothing the other person does truly surprises you or brings a sense of love undeserved? That is a mentality held by the receiver who believes he/she did something for the other so, rightfully, is getting something in return… Talk about a stagnant, heartless relationship!
The best gifts I’ve ever received were ones I wasn’t expecting and especially didn’t deserve. Like the Christmas presents I received from the family who invited me over for Christmas and the gear (shoes, backpack airporter, speaker, dry bags, clothes and more) given to me for this trip by friends.
Yet isn’t that how true deep hearted love is meant to be lived and given out? To give for the sole purpose to give. To reach out to them even when they are running from you or a situation. To continually view them as they could be and are at heart rather than what they portray? To be uncapped and unconditional despite all odds and sensible circumstances? And Ultimately; To be given without a precursor; to be given unconditionally…
Furthering this true and biblical perspective is what has been brought to the surface as the new year is just around the bend. And I want to invite you into it also by starting with a simple step in naming what occurrences lately have been given in your life that you can identify as a true gift. An area where Grace can be seen and therefore proof that God is a giver despite ourselves or what’s happening.
Having trouble thinking of some, I struggle with this a bit because I am a worker/achiever when it comes to so many things. It’s hard for me to see a gift because normally I do everything I can to have my hand and effort in it’s happening. YET even if you do this like me, most often the outcome is still given in Grace.
(Prior to the race I was gifted with the opportunity to have an article about my tiny house. From which they mentioned my partaking of the WR and brought me supporters and followers! A Grace filled Gift)
I built my house so rightfully I can take credit for that, or I can see how God provided the perfect amount of help and loving knowledgeable father to encourage and grow and aid in it’s arising. That was a gift~ That was Grace… I can take assurance that the structure is sound and won’t collapse when driving it from point A to point B, or the fact of the matter is, it’s the first major building project I’ve partaken and has yet to fault or crumble on me. That is a gift~ That is Grace…
(Wading the waters as I surf an entire sunrise on the Eastern coast of the Philippines ALONE, the only surfer in the water. This is unheard of, this is a gift of the Grace of God)
I can take credit for acquiring a surf board at the beach during our vacation day here in the Philippines or I can humble myself and see how nothing of that moment would have been possible without God working through people: 1)the ability to go to the beach, 2)the presence of a family who brought their own surf board (none to rent where we were at), 3)the genuine personalities that had been evident in their whole family the moment they invited me into their family time and to spend dinner with them, 4)and them offering the use their board to me free of cost…
I could take credit for getting the chance to ride our ministry hosts motorcycle across the island because I took the drivers course, had a license and can be trusted but the matter of fact is, the determining factor was still the owner of the bike, was still based on Grace.
I can go on and on but this is just an example. Even when we think gifts are reactions to who we are or what we do, they are truly gifts of Grace and given from God simply because that is who He is. A giver, an unconditional giver.
Now it’s your turn. Tell me what your gifts have been. Not only because we should all take a moment to look inside and see the gifts God is using to love us with but also because it’s encouraging to me to hear testimonies of where God is. Little or big, I don’t care if it’s even your gas tank was on empty the past 3 days and you still made it to work on time, just write it out and call it to existence.
Leave a comment of your gift/gifts or if you don’t want to be public but still want to express it, send me a personal email. This will be a huge testimony of the character of God and I’m excited to see it painted out through the Gifts He Gives.
