Grace is my star word for 2015:
For 5 minutes I'm running with the concept of "try." I'll define try as to make an effort. In the church we sometimes think we need to contrast grace and works (you know, works don't save us, but although God saves us by grace, we don't get saved without works, etc.).
Sometimes I reflect upon accomplishing anything, and I've discovered you usually get the best results with a moderate amount of trying. Not trying at all? Nothing happens at all. Trying too hard to do whatever it is? I don't know about other people, but trying too hard with too much effort and concentration typically ties me up in knots of anxiety so I get less than nothing done. So yes, we need to try to accomplish our goals, we need to try in order to do the task our employment sets before us, we can't sit back on those accolades from past tryings, no matter how splendid they are (or is that "were") because it's a new day and we need to keep trying because the world needs to go on living with our help.
But grace is my star word for 2015, and how does that fit together with "try"? It's almost a different category! Grace breaks into our routine amidst our tries and efforts; we see the results of grace when we look outside ourselves and our world of trying—and of trials, too, I'll admit. Grace is gift. But then again, the ability to try, to accomplish, is in itself a gift. A gift of God's grace.
bless you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteAmen friend!!
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