By the Grace of God

How many times have you heard someone, perhaps yourself, say, "By the grace of God . . . ."?

• By the grace of God, he made it through the savage river.
• By the grace of God, she survived her heart attack.
• By the grace of God, they foraged enough food to make it through the winter.
• By the grace of God, he outran the bear.

In crunch times we are more likely to humble ourselves and cry out for help. In our crises we recognize our vulnerability and credit God with deliverance. Too bad we don't recognize our need for God in the good times, for those are often the very times we succumb to temptation or are blindsided by the enemy. Like lambs cut from the fold, we make easy prey for wolves in sheep's clothing.

Drawing near to God ensures His protection.

"Draw near to God

and He will draw near to you."

~James 4:8

 

We may never know what troubles have been averted just because the Good Shepherd is keeping watch over our souls.

"I lay down My life for the sheep."

~ John 10:17

By the grace of God, He loved the world so much that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

A Chink in Our Armor

The leather repairman is coming today--to fix a small tear in our new red leather recliner. A careless accident involving my hubs resulted in his "Oh, oh" moment last week.

In the overall scheme of things, not a big deal. But it got me thinking: even strong materials can be torn or marred in the blink of an eye.

How about our souls?

God has given us full body armor to wear against the attacks of the devil. Yet when we become careless or otherwise occupied, are we diligent to put it on as instructed in Ephesians 6? 

Are we wearing the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness? Are our feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace? Are we taking up the shield of faith, with which we can extinguish the devil's flaming arrows? How about the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God?

If we are not fully suited up, we leave ourselves unprotected, and, sure as shooting, that crafty devil will take aim at any chink in our armor. Don't let even one of his flaming arrows through your defenses. The damage it creates will far surpass any tear in my red leather recliner!

The Game of Life

First baseball game of the season. New team, new coaches, and a whole lot of shuffling going on as staff adjusts players' positions for best results. Of course, they've been doing that in practice; but there's nothing like a real live game against real live opponents to point out defects.

To win games, players must be willing to play where the coaches place them. Whether infielders, outfielders, pitcher, catcher, or shortstop, individuals are called upon to put the welfare of the team ahead of their own personal interests. Each position must be filled with the player who is best suited for that job.

Got me to thinking about the walk of a Christian. He suits up and shows up for the game. Then, like the baseball player, he submits to his Coach to place him where he is best suited in the Body of Christ. Perhaps Christian always wanted to be the eye, but God makes him a foot. Does Christian pout and sulk or does he trust and obey his Coach?

"If the whole body were an eye, 

where would the sense of hearing be?

If the whole body were an ear, 

where would the sense of smell be:

But in fact 

God has arranged the parts in the body,

every one of them,

just as he wanted them to be."

~I Corinthians 12:17-20

After all, we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10).  God knows the "game of life" and knows the position He wants each of us to play. He will, therefore, provide all the gear and gifting we need to do our part in the game of life in order to bring Him glory.

We have a winning Coach: we are a winning team! 

All for One and One for all! GO, FIGHT, WIN!