Emily McCreery
Recently I was visiting a couple in the community that has been struggling. Partially they are struggling because of their own decisions and partially because of their environment. In my experience, it can be a Catch-22 to find your way out of a situation like theirs.
Regardless of their circumstances both of these individuals are working to better themselves, each other, and those around them. Their first step was acknowledging their responsibility. Neither of them shies away from how their decisions contributed to where they are ... good and bad.
We talked about the steps they are making, the judgment they are faced with, and the obstacles they must overcome to get to where they want to be. Even though they are making positive strides forward, there will continue to be hurdles. We all understand that. There are plenty of cliché phrases to suit their situation: nothing comes easy, everything worth having is worth fighting for, etc. They know that.
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But one thing I am not sure if they understood was grace. I reminded them both that they have been saved by grace. God has given each of them grace upon grace.
"For by grace you have been saved through faith." -- Ephesians 2:8
God has forgiven them of their wrongdoings. God has lifted them up when they were down. God loves them without condition.
We are saved by God. There is no catch. There is no checklist we have to complete. There is no fine print.
We are saved.
"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God." -- Ephesians 2:8
Grace is our most undeserved gift. But it is that -- a gift from our maker. And we need to remember to gift ourselves a little grace.
I was working on a writing assignment recently and giving myself grace was part of the challenge in crafting the assignment. Giving grace is not always an easy task.
It is no secret that I like order and organization and when I have a list of tasks to do, sometimes I am hard on myself if I do not get them completed in a certain amount of time. Sometimes I rush to get them completed and then they are not finished in a way that I would like them to be finished.
We will inevitably mess up, but then we apologize and confess our sins. That is when we receive the perfect gift of grace. Do we apologize to ourselves for not offering grace to us? What would that even look like?
When we stumble or fall, it is okay. When we make a mistake, learn from it. When we simply just make it through the day, enjoy it. When we accomplish even the smallest of goals we set, soak it in.
Well done, good and faithful servant. Make the effort to sit in peace and know that you have done well. Know that you have done good things.
Christ has no tally sheet of our hiccups. There is no free pass for so many right choices in a row. There is no express lane for doing good things.
We receive grace instead. It is the best do-over. It is the best eraser. It is the best new day.
It. Is. Grace.
"From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace." -- John 1:16
Grace is a gift from God. A gift to each of us. Share it with others, but share it with yourself also.
Emily McCreery, parish ministry associate, is pastor of First Presbyterian Church in North Platte.
Editor's note: Area ministers who would like to be part of this feature can contact Joan von Kampen at 308-535-4707 or [email protected]. Submissions may be edited for length or to conform to newspaper style.
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