Grace! Grace!

Psalm 119:55(MSG)
I meditate on your name all night, God, treasuring your revelation, O God.

Rest in His grace.

Grace!  Grace!  Amazing grace....truly how sweet the sound.  On the heals of the music post from yesterday, these words are drawing me into the old treasured hymn, Amazing Grace.  The word, grace, is on my mind today, as I am reading the new book by Max Lucado entitled:  GRACE.  (A book review  will be coming soon.  I have to finish the book first, of course.)

Reading this verse today and meditating on all that is embodied in the mighty name of God, I am humbled to be called a child of the King!  He is so great that admittedly there are times when I feel extremely unworthy to call upon Him in my smallness and continued failings.  But, then, I am drawn back to that five letter word, G-R-A-C-E.  

I have heard this word described many ways throughout the years, but reading Max's words yesterday, encompassed everything that I believe the word grace means!  If you are struggling today with your humanness and perhaps being too hard on yourself...then pause a minute and meditate on the name of Jesus.  Or maybe you are thinking that if you could just get everything in your life straightened out and polished up, then you would make a decision to come to Christ....in your best Sunday clothes...all perfectly put together.  Guess what?  You don't need to do that.  You just need to come to Him...like you are...right now.  Still don't believe me?  Read the following passage from Max's book about Grace.  Let his words sink deeply in and bathe you in the loving arms of Christ.

Max Lucado from his book titled: GRACE, writes, "Grace is God as heart surgeon, cracking open your chest, removing your heart--poisoned as it is with pride and pain--and replacing it with his own.  Rather than tell you to change, he creates the change.  Do you clean up so he can accept you?  No, he accepts you and begins cleaning you up.  His dream isn't just to get you into heaven but to get heaven into you.  What a difference this makes!"  (Italics my own.)

Lord,
You are a God with infinite knowledge and wisdom!  We praise Your holy name today and thank you for your amazing grace.  May it wash completely over each of us as we approach Your throne of forgiveness.
In Your precious Son's name,
Amen





 

Joy

 Psalm 119:23(NIV)

Though rulers sit together and slander me, your servant will meditate on Your decrees.





My kids with Grandpa and Grandma.



Yes, today's verse is easy to understand in this season of my life.  It says that His "servant will meditate upon" His decrees.  Not only can I meditate on the Lord's direction given through His Word, but I can purpose to apply those directives with the ever present help of the Holy Spirit.  My weekend was full of the emotion of joy, as I experienced some fun family events.   There is a command that is written in the New Testament that I had absolutely no trouble basking in throughout my time off.



I Thessalonians 5:16(NIV)~Be joyful always.
Again, the circumstances of this joyous weekend made it easy to be overwhelmed with a spirit of thankfulness and pleasure, but what about when we are living in the midst of a trial?  What then?  How do we stand in a posture of joy when the walls around us are crumbling and toppling over? 

The answer to those tough questions are found in the next decree written in the two verses following verse sixteen.

1 Thessalonians 5:17&18(NIV)~Pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Wow!  That's incredible.  I wonder how many times I have said something like, "I'm just not sure what God's will is for my life".  In these three verses alone, I could live my entire life with direction and purpose!  I could sum it up like this:  Be in Christ Jesus; pray continually; and be joyful all the while.

Father,

You are so good!  You never change.  You are always there for us and You clearly guide us. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to celebrate a joyous family event this past weekend.  Through Your clear direction today, I can live with purpose and conviction!

In Christ's name,

Amen