Day 14
God is Gracious
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that one may boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9
Grace. It can often feel like an overwhelming concept when you stop and truly think about it. Some may believe that God’s grace is a one-time transaction—something that happened only when they first accepted Jesus as their Savior. Others may have walked through seasons of shallow faith, taking that grace for granted. Then some- if you’re like me —find it easy to extend grace to others yet struggle to offer that same grace to themselves.
The word grace appears 131 times in the New Testament—76 of those times from the Apostle Paul, a man who understood God’s grace deeply. In 1 Corinthians 15:10, he writes:
“But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.”
Paul doesn’t write this to boast, but rather to remind us that God’s grace is a gift. Not a one-time transaction, but a transformative, continuous, and life-changing gift. It flows from God’s intentional and unending love for us. That intense, all-consuming, never-failing love that He has for every single soul on this planet.
Pastor and theologian, Charles Spurgeon, once said, “Between here and heaven, every minute that the Christian lives will be a minute of grace.”
With that in mind, I challenge you to take full advantage of every beautiful minute the Lord blesses you with. Allow His grace to grow you, to strengthen you, and to transform you.
Remember, God’s grace isn’t extended to us because of what we do, what we have, or who we are, but rather because of who He is and what He has done. Grace is not a singular moment-- it is a way of life. It is the ongoing renewal of our hearts through our Lord, Jesus Christ.
May we walk each day in that grace, and allow God to use us to point others toward the same gift of freedom and hope we have received through our Savior.
FURTHER REFLECTION:
Reflect on the times in your life where you have experienced God’s grace. What happened? Who, or what, did God use to help you? How did you grow from that experience?
What steps can you take today to allow God’s grace to not only transform and grow your heart but also to provide that same love and grace to others?
PRAYER:
Father, thank You for the beautiful gift of grace. Thank You for Jesus, Your Son, who came down and showed me what true love and grace look like. Lord, remind me who I am in You—that I have been forgiven, that I am loved, and that I am Yours.
Give me strength and wisdom to live out the example of Christ each day, to love others, and to extend grace to all those around me. Use me for Your will and glory—my life, my talents, my voice, even my scars—to reach and love others the way You have loved me.
I pray all of this in the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.
FOR FURTHER STUDY: Romans 5:20-21, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Hebrews 4:15-16
by: Blaine Corbitt