Verse of the Day “The Lord is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. The Lord is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.”
Psalms 145:8-9 NLT
Recently, myself, my wife, and our three kids took a trip to our local supermarket. As we were walking in, a man accidentally bumped into my 10-year-old son as he was exiting. He immediately apologized, but my son didn’t think anything of it, saying, “It’s okay, don’t worry about it.” A few minutes later, as my wife was shopping and the kids were running through the aisles, my son got accidentally bumped again but by his big sister. She immediately apologized, but my son responded drastically different. In dramatic fashion, he loudly exclaimed how his sister “brutally attacked” him and that he couldn’t believe she could be so careless. In that moment, as I hunched over and laughed sarcastically about my son’s different responses, the Holy Spirit asked me a simple question: “Do you believe in grace?”
For full disclosure, I’ve never been a fan of when the Holy Spirit asks me questions. It’s never for His benefit, but for mine. He challenges me to look at the aspects within myself that need work – that need His transformation. I knew why He was asking me this question – it’s easy for me to see and give grace to others, but most times it’s hard for me to receive that same grace for myself. I am my own worst critic; when I make a mistake, I am really hard on myself. Because of this, I sometimes think God looks down on me from His throne in complete and utter disgust of my mistakes. On the contrary, God is patient and kind to us when we miss the mark. Just as I used that moment with my son to help teach and show grace for him, so does God extend that same grace to us!
Let me challenge and encourage you to believe in grace for yourself. Don’t think your mistakes are too big for God to cover. The enemy is skilled in weaponizing our pasts to paralyze us from moving forward in our relationship with God. Remind yourself daily that the Lord loves you. He has forgiven you of your transgressions and He is generous with His abundant love and grace. All we have to do is allow His kindness and patience to lead us to repentance.
Prayer
Father, every good and perfect gift comes from You. Your grace and Your love are those perfect gifts for us. I pray that we might receive those gifts freely for ourselves, even when the enemy tries to tell us we don’t deserve them. Your salvation and Your grace cover all, and I pray that we not only receive those perfect gifts, but also healing and freedom in the areas we’ve accidentally hidden from You. Your grace is sufficient. I love You, Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Extra Reading
“Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?”
Romans 2:4 NLT
