It is one of those evenings after a day in which my world was once again shaken. It is one of those Saturday nights after a week in which my world was rocked a couple times. Somehow I feel more grounded in Him than I have ever been, but my voice held many tears as I prayed and connected with Him through Scripture in my time with Him this evening. I stand secure in the promise that nothing can separate me from His love, but I weep at the pain people have inflicted upon me. Last week in Mexico each team member was asked to answer a question during our devotions together. The question was, “What is your favorite characteristic of God? Why? How have you seen this in your life?” (I know three questions, right?)
I had been thinking a lot about faith going into the trip, which I wrote about here last week. I had this realization that I will not be able to have faith in heaven, and it made me want to make the most of my opportunity to believe in the unseen while still on earth. I had wanted to share with the team about how amazing it was that righteousness comes by faith. I realized that was not a characteristic of God, but an action on our part. As I thought about it, I realized my answer could be the same. The focus was merely different.
You see, “Therefore the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring.” To make it easy for you in light of you not reading the entire book of Romans in this moment, what the Apostle Paul means to say is that it “…may be guaranteed to all who believe.”
I shared with the team how thankful I was that grace never compromised truth. I shared with them how three and a half years previously as I shared my story with the team in Mexico, I was an addict and didn’t know it. I shared with them about the things I was doing back then and how God has transformed me.
I am so grateful God’s grace never compromises His truth. Otherwise, I would not be sober because He would still be trying to make me feel better about how I was acting. God doesn’t try to make me feel better about how I am acting. He just tells me that the wages of sin will always lead to death. I am so grateful for His honesty. Otherwise, how would I ever find freedom?
Later in the week, we were asked to share what we had shared with the team with the children if we so desired. I desired, but I had a problem. I do believe a five year old ought to be taught that grace never compromises truth and how amazing that is and how beneficial it is to know this in life, but I couldn’t explain it in 30-60 seconds over a mike to 60-80 people, mostly under the age of 12.
How could I explain grace to a child?
I thought about the verse I had shared with the team. I am so grateful for the truth in this verse and in so many other verses in Romans. See, God decided righteousness would come by faith so that it could literally be available to everyone. He knew we were screwed if it depended on what we did. So instead of making it about us and our deeds, He made it about His grace and love. Salvation doesn’t come from me and who I am; it comes from God and who He is.
And that is what I told the children. Sort of. I told them my favorite thing about God is His grace. He loves to love us. I told them whether God loves us doesn’t depend on what we do or what had been done to us. God love us because He loves to love us. I don’t remember if I told them, but I planned to tell them it is His favorite thing to do. He loves to love us. It is who He is.
I don’t know if you have ever been in a relationship where it feels like it is a burden for the other person to love you. Every time they do something “loving”, they let you hear about how generous they are being for giving this to you. Or maybe it is one of those vaguer feelings that comes when a parent wanted a boy but was stuck with a girl or vice versa. The child is always left knowing that they weren’t actually desired and no matter what, they will never measure up. Nothing they do will ever repay their parents for a problem they cannot change nor ever even created.
See, God’s love isn’t like that at all. He loves to love us. He even decided how we would receive righteousness, so anyone could have it. I love how the verse says “so that it may be by grace.” God loves to love us. He went way out of His way to ensure our salvation was dependent on His grace and love, not on our works.
God isn’t in heaven, tapping His foot and saying, “Damn, Laura, I wished you would get it together! When are you ever going to change?”
No, God is in heaven, looking down at me and smiling. “Laura,” He says, “You are everything I ever dreamed you would be: saved by grace, a perfect demonstration of my love and mercy. Looking at you, reminds me of how very good I am. How I love to love you!”
And so He changes me into the glorious image of His Son! Because He is good…
What kind of Father do you have in heaven? How does He interact with you? Do you believe He interacts with you based on how you act or how He loves?
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