Devotion: We’re Made Good as A Gift

Romans 1:23 -24

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

The concept of Grace is essential to our identify and life as Christians. We believe that Jesus, the Son of God, died for our sins so we can have forgiveness and eternal life by believing in him.
Grace – the love of God we can never deserve or repay – tells us that this forgiveness and new life comes without an invoice – Jesus has already paid the price.

Jesus died once for all, but God’s grace is not a one-time or one-dimensional thing. It’s a constant source of life and light and a gift to be shared.

Sometimes we are able to see God’s grace in action: “But for the grace of God and a last-minute delay, I would have been on the plane that crashed…at home when the burglars came…asleep
when the fire started….”

Other times we don’t see that God is constantly giving us grace. A deep red cardinal at the bird feeder on a winter’s day. The phone call from a friend when we really needed it. Swallowing hurtful words instead of saying them. These are all grace notes, if you will, in the story of our lives.

God gives His grace to us, but He doesn’t want it to stop with us. We honor his gift and amplify it by passing it along, and by being His face to the world. We can look for the opportunities that come before us every day: Freeze those extra brownies? No, take them and two cups of coffee to a friend who no longer drives. Going to the grocery store? Check what the Barnabas Community needs and add that to your list. Caller i.d. says it’s your long-winded aunt on the phone? Answer and give her your full attention.

We can also make opportunities to share grace. Invite friends to church. Give a care giver a few hours respite by taking his or her place with an ill family member. Make a hospital visit and pray
with the patient and family.

God made us good, through Christ, as a gift. And he also wants us to be a gift to others.

Merciful, generous God, thank you for your loving gift of grace. Show me how I can share your grace and bless others. Amen.

Devotion written by Cheryl Stubbendieck