Thriving in Grace

I've never felt more humbled than when I had to hang my head and allow God to forgive me for yet another one of my screw-ups. 

But I believe it's more than just accepting grace, it's thriving in grace. I'm just going to let that soak in for a minute. Let it tear me apart and build me back up. All my mistakes, all my sin, all the times I thought to myself, "I am just going to do what I want". I haven't just been forgiven. I have been wiped clean. No strings attached.

And there is one more layer to grace. Not only am I forgiven, but I am built up stronger. Because in His infinite wisdom, God can take my mistakes, coat them with grace, and turn them into lessons. In an easy example… imagine that you are taking an exam and run into a question that you complete bomb. After you fail that test, you learn the right way to get the answer. And you are also about to teach your study group the correct formula. Then, when the final comes, both you and your study group ace the class.

Now a harder example… I will be the first to say that I have had a wrong guy or two in my life. (but we won't tally them up) I have had to learn some lessons the hard way. But when I allowed grace to settle in my heart, I was better prepared for the next (sometimes even more difficult) time. Whether it be knowing myself, temptation, lying, guarding my heart, or all of the above…. God's grace first comforts, then heals. My actions come with consequences, but when I can humble myself enough to accept and THRIVE in grace, I am one step closer to the image of the woman I was designed to be.

A beautiful woman who accepts her human nature, but keeps on striving for the goal. She allows herself to be seen as wrong (HUGE struggle for me) and allows her heart to be worked on. She comes out stronger from the lessons. She is beautiful!

But He give us more grace. That is why Scripture says, "God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humbled and oppressed." James 4:6 

God WANTS to give you grace, because in that... the Spirit increases. And where there is Spirit, the good fruits come to light

Love

Joy 

Peace

Forbearance (which apparently means patient self-control, just learned that!)

Kindness

Goodness 

Faithfulness

Gentleness

Self-Control

[Remind me to do about a million posts on fruits of the Spirit, because I'm pretty sure God just summed up beautiful a lot better than I could have…]

Being humble enough to accept grace is difficult. It will take some heart-searching to see what that means for you. And it will probably be very different than what it means for me. But just as giving grace brings freedom, so does accepting it! 

Model Cred: My brother. Paragliding is one of the most freeing experiences you'll ever have on earth!

By grace alone, my hope is found. He is my light, my strength, my song.