Grace in the Process - Your Nightly Prayer - May 13th
Grace in the Process
Your Nightly Prayer
by Kyle Norman
TONIGHT’S SCRIPTURE
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith.” - Ephesians 2:8
SOMETHING TO PONDER
When my son was learning to drive, I would take him out to a large parking lot to practice his skills. We would practice breaking and accelerating, right turns and left turns, and the dreaded parallel parking. As we went along, I would remind him of certain key points – things he knew but maybe overlooked amid the frenzy of learning to drive. My comments were never critical or condemning, and I never raised my voice. I simply offered gentle reminders that would help him navigate his driving journey.
Occasionally, my son would hear my words condemningly. For whatever reason, he would feel that my comments were critical and biting. He would get frustrated and angry, believing I was pointing out every way he was wrong or unskilled. Reminding him to shoulder-check, for example, was taken to mean: “you’re not good enough” or “try harder.” No matter how well the journey had been up to that point, one comment could dampen the entire day in the parking lot. If we think God loves us based on our good performance, then any hiccup or infraction will be taken as a sign of wrath or rejection. We end up living under a spirit of “do more”, “try harder,” and “be better.” If God’s love is conditional in any way, then we never really know where we stand, do we?
The gospel message, however, is that we are saved by grace. Grace is the unearned, unwarranted gift of divine love. We don’t do anything for it; we simply receive it. We claim this in faith, which means we dare to believe that God’s grace exists in those places where we are tempted to disregard it. God’s grace covers every moment and corner of life. When we live from this place of grace, our lives become transformed. Temptations lose their power. Forgiveness and peace flow out from us. These things occur because we know that nothing in heaven or on earth can discredit God’s love.
As you move into a time of rest this night, ask yourself these three questions: Firstly, “Where did I experience God’s grace today?”Secondly, “Where did I give grace today? Lastly, where may I have missed God's grace today? Grace is the foundation of our life with God. It points us to what God does more than what we earn or accomplish. We never earn God’s blessings, for to earn them would be to undercut their very nature. You are saved by grace. May that truth grant you peace this night, and always.
YOUR NIGHTLY PRAYER
Precious Jesus,
There are not enough words to express my appreciation for your grace. My heart is filled with gratitude for your love, poured out into my life. I thank you that I can claim grace in any situation. There is no problem, mistake, failure, or sin that your grace won’t cover. And so, as I rest my body this night, may my soul rest in the grace that saves me.
Lord, when I am tempted to believe that I earn my salvation, help me to know that there is nothing that I can do to make you love me more. Free me from the selfish need to perform or prove myself. When I am tempted to twist the words of grace into insults of condemnation, help me to know that there is nothing that I can do to make you love me less. Free me from the vices of self-rejection, and self condemnation.
Please strengthen my faith in this truth.
I pray all this in the gracious name of Jesus.
Amen
THREE THINGS TO MEDITATE UPON
- Grace is not averse to response; it is averse to earning. How can you express your reliance on God’s grace?
- What do you think is the relationship between grace and faith? How does one support the other?
- In what area of your life do you need to claim more grace?
Reflect on tonight’s prayer and share how God met you there. Join the Your Nightly Prayer discussion on the Crosswalk Forum.
Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Johannes Plenio
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