Grace...

...was the theme of 2005 and is apparently spilling over into 2006. All morning, God's grace kept popping into my head...grace is the key to everything--the key to healing relationship difficulties, the key to learning to love people the way God does, the key to accepting ourselves, the key to letting down our wall of self-protection (or "fence," if you will :)), etc. If we don't learn to stand on grace, we'll never be able to get past the bumps and have real intimacy with people. There's just too much sin in the way!

This morning as I was hashing and re-hashing an issue with God, I kept sensing that he was trying to redirect my attention off of the problem and onto him. Of course, being the stubborn and linear thinker, I kept thinking, "Um, s'cuse me God? I think you're trying to change the subject. I'm trying to tell you about this issue. I don't know how to fix it! Quit trying to dodge the subject!" But as I finally relented, agreeing to table the issue for the moment and focus on him--what kind of God he is, what he's like--, a crazy thing happened. The reality of Him started to grow, causing me to shut my mouth in awe--awe of his incredible love, his incredible patience with ME (Somehow, in the midst of everything, I had lost sight of my own sin and issues. Imagine that.), and the incredible pleasure he takes in loving me, even in all of my selfishness. I suddenly felt embarrassed by my quickness to point a finger at others' issues and amazingly humbled and thankful that I have such a God. Wow.

So anyway. That helped start the day with a real awareness of grace and one less chip on my shoulder. Embarrassed, but thankful. God's grace abounds.