Do You Hold the Key?

The word that won’t leave me this week is … Grace.  Not only a beautiful word, but a powerful word.  Not only a conceptual word, but a practical word.  Not an easy word to process (by any means), but a word that could quite possibly hold the key.  The key to what?  The key to thriving in this life on Earth!  Seriously, is grace the key to possessing the ability and desire to thrive?

When I check out a few words synonymous with grace in Merriam-Webster, I find words like “approval”, “favor”, “mercy”, “pardon”, “reprieve”, and “charm”. Who doesn’t want more of this in their life?  I find that grace is a “virtue from God” that’s actually unmerited or undeserved.  It’s a “special favor”.  I particularly like that it is a “disposition to or an act or instance of kindness, courtesy, or clemency”. Furthermore, it is a “charming or attractive trait or characteristic” that possesses “a pleasing appearance or effect”.  “A quality or state of being considerate or thoughtful”.  How about this one, “a controlled, polite, and pleasant way of behaving”? Who doesn’t enjoy being around others who are controlled, polite, and pleasant?

I do think of beauty AND power when I consider the word, Grace.  Beautiful because all things are “right” when grace is offered and received.  Beautiful because everyone wins when grace is offered.  Beautiful because grace has a way of offering a pleasant aroma to any situation.  It sets the tone for beauty and love to occur.  Powerful because with it amazing and unbelievable things occur. Lives can be changed.  Environments can be altered.  Mindsets can be shifted.  Productivity instead of judgment prevail.

Grace is one of those things like “gravity”,  “wind”, and “love”.  These are concepts because no one has ever seen these things; however, no one can deny their existence.  The “effects” of these concepts can NEVER be denied.  They are powerful, long-lasting, impactful, and meaningful.  Grace is practical … it’s REAL!

For those of us who are Christians, grace is everything to us.  God’s grace is poured out on us the moment we admit and relinquish our life to Him.  We have been given all we ever need in order to thrive here on Earth in that precise moment … whether we ever tap into His grace or not, He has poured it on us.

So, the first question is … “Do you accept  and rest in His grace?”  Do you accept that you are saved by grace and have faith that God IS and will always be?  Do you accept that Jesus Christ “became” your sin so that you can openly come to the Throne of God and have relationship with the Holy Trinity?  Yep, that’s the first question into “holding the key”, the key of grace.

The next question is … “Do you freely offer grace?” “Are you a grace-giver?” Ouch!!! Do you give grace every chance you can?  Or, are you a “reactor” or “judger” of those in need of grace?  I was reading various quotes about grace and came across this one by C. JoyBell C: “Grace is what picks me up and lifts my wings high above and I fly! Grace always conquers! Be graceful in everything; in anger, in sadness, in joy, in kindness, in unkindness, retain grace with you!”

“Grace always conquers!”

That’s something to gnaw on a little while.

Not wins, but CONQUERS.  I wonder if living a lifestyle of grace helps us not only “win” the battle (the situation at the moment); but helps us “conquer” anything that comes against us (in the future).  By lifestyle, I mean we actively and diligently look for opportunities to offer grace, especially to the underserving, on a day to day basis, to all who may come within our path. If we choose to adopt a lifestyle of grace, would we not change? Would the result be that we become more like the Holy Father and His Son?  Offering grace to all?

Conquers what?  Hate? Frustration? Anger? Disappointment? Shame? Failure? Sadness? Depression? Grief? Judgement? Deceit? Dishonesty? Embarrassment? Insecurity? Uncomfortableness? You fill in the rest…

Yes, I think grace may be the key to thriving.  If we are fully accepting and resting in His grace, we are more in tune with the benefits of grace and the beauty of grace.  Because, we have experienced them, right? Therefore, we can learn to allow ourselves to become more attuned to those who may need grace.

What are you going to do with this grace freely given to you?  Are you just a consumer of grace? Or, are you a generator of grace?  When grace is shown to us and we fully appreciate that it was undeserved or unmerited, shouldn’t we WANT to share this with others?

Practically-speaking, at first, this grace lifestyle “ain’t gonna be easy”!!!  We have a need to prove we are right or have the best way to do something.  We spend a lot of mental energy thinking about all the good we do … not so much thought about ways we can improve.  We don’t like to be humble because it “feels” weak, although we know Scripture says otherwise … go look that up! We sometimes momentarily feel better when we judge others, whether we admit it or not. It is a choice to look for ways to offer grace to others.

Our Southern states have been hit by one massive hurricane and three more unprecedented hurricanes are churning in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico at this writing.  The East coast is bracing for the effects of these hurricanes.  The West Coast and Central US is dealing with the effects of wildfires.   There are threats of attacks by other countries. People are arguing about who is to blame about any- and every-thing. People are being shot and killed at an alarming rate in the US.  (Enough depressing headlines.)  In the midst of this, people are loving on others. Sacrificing their time and resources to reach out to those in need. GRACE.  I have no doubt that our country will continue to do this … offer grace to those in need.

What about offering grace to those who do not deserve it? Like me? Like you? Like … them?  Will we forget that we ourselves are undeserving?

Will we adopt a lifestyle of grace?  Will we be grace generators and NOT just grace consumers?

As I have said a couple of weeks ago, you could be in your last 10 ½ weeks here on this Earth as my dear, sweet Savannah was in hers one year ago.  What are you going to do with your life?  What do you want your obituary to say about you? I believe Savannah had the key of grace and used it quite often to open doors of reconciliation, progress, and love to all those in her path.

I witnessed a true act of God’s grace in Savannah’s life during those 10 ½ weeks.  Many had prayed for her comfort as she lay in that hospital bed.  We did not share specifics of the condition of her precious, marred body that sepsis had overtaken (honestly, out of respect for Savannah).  Furthermore, I did not want people to remember what happened to Savannah as much as WHO she is.  Anyway, as I have processed Savannah living in Eternity, I was reminded of Stephen the martyr in the Holy Bible who was stoned for the sake of Christ.  He was full of grace and performed mighty works.  The Bible notes that those in attendance at his arrest and subsequent stoning noted that  his “face shone like an angel”. During his stoning, he asked forgiveness for those killing him.  Back to my baby, I believe that God poured His grace on Savannah when she first relinquished to His power, as just a kid.  I believe that Savannah adopted (or chose) to live a lifestyle of grace.  I believe that God continued to pour double portions of His grace on her in the hospital.  Here’s how I know I witnessed the effects of God’s grace, Savannah was NEVER inconsolable.  She never writhed in pain during her whole “painful” 10 ½ weeks.  Oh, she felt pain, but NEVER for very long, just long enough to know what needed to be done to provide comfort. That, my friend, is God’s grace.  She was kind and encouraging to the medical professionals who sometimes had to administer painful treatments to her.  A lifestyle of grace. God’s grace.

Yep, GRACE CONQUERS.

Yep, I believe grace is the key to unlock the door to thriving.

This is one of the last pictures taken of Savannah.  This picture is actually placed in the housing office on the campus of the University of Louisiana at Monroe.  I am told that this picture reminds others to smile.  I believe this is a picture of grace.  This is Savannah … not made up, not performing a task … just being Savannah. This picture, I believe, is a beautiful representation of GRACE. I am so thankful I am her mom.

Back to the original question, do you hold the key?  If not, find it.  You will become a conqueror as you THRIVE!

Who will you offer grace to in this moment?

Stephanie