Evidence of Grace

I will admit, the last few months have been rather trying for me.  I'm not as in love with South Carolina as I'd hoped I would be by this time.  It still feels like we're in a holding pen for the next year till we move on to the next phase of our lives.  Still without a church to call home, and a group of believers to call friends, life in Beaufort is rather lonely.  It would be easy to feel sorry for myself were it not for the grace of God.  Rather than looking to outside sources or people to sustain me, I can always turn to my heavenly Father for strength.  When Paul writes of the thorn in his flesh he pleaded with God to remove it.  "But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.'  Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.  For when I am weak, then I am strong."  Relying on the Lord in all circumstances allows his power to be made all the more evident in my life.  So though there are areas of life that look bleak from where I'm sitting, I still put my whole trust in the grace of God.

So what is grace?  Grace, simply put, is the unearned favor or blessing of God.  I've always thought of grace as getting something we don't deserve.  And it is true that we do not deserve any of the good gifts God bestows upon us.  God withholding judgement and condemnation (what we do deserve) is evidence of his mercy.

The beauty of God's grace is that it is evident all over the place.  When you are on the lookout for grace you will start to see it everywhere you turn.  He is gracious to provide us everything we need from food, to clothing, to a warm bed to sleep in.  How easily we take these things for granted.  Scripture itself is evidence of grace, because through it God allows us to see a glimpse of who he is!  God's Word, "is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." (Psalm 119:105)  Through his grace God shows us the path to righteousness and peace.  He also shows his grace by intervening in our lives when we cannot go a step further without him.  (Not that he ever left us in the first place.)

An example of this leapt to mind just this afternoon.  As I said, I've been homesick for Okinawa and missing the fellowship of dear friends there.  Walking through the commissary today I ran across a friend I'd met in Japan.  I was overjoyed at seeing a familiar face in a place that has been void of familiarity for me until now.  In that moment it was as if God was reaching out to me through this woman telling me that he sees my heart and will provide for my needs.

Small instances of grace such as this all point to God's love for his people, which culminates in the demonstration of grace: that of Christ's death on the cross.  Remember how grace means getting something we haven't earned?  This principle is never more true than when considering salvation.  God's grace is extended to us through faith alone in his Son, not by works or good deeds.  "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-- and this not from yourselves it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)

I thank God daily for his grace shown to me through the sacrifice of Christ.  His truly is a love without equal.  I'm thankful that no matter what pain or hardship I go through in this life, his grace will always be sufficient.  In what ways do you see God's grace in your life?