Why Are You Trying to Earn Grace?

Every morning on my way to work, I have what I like to call a "Jesus Jam Session." Basically, I crank up the Christian music and sing my tone-deaf heart out. So, if you see me driving down I-440 at about 7:15 in the morning waving my arms and screaming like a maniac, don't worry, I'm worshiping.

Now, I have my "Jesus Jam Session" for several reasons:
-Firstly, I am not a morning person and my daily cup of redneck coffee (a can of Dt. Mtn. Dew) simply isn't enough to wake me up.
-Secondly, as a high school teacher, a lot of days I have to give myself a motivational speech of types before heading into the trenches of raging hormones and unstable emotions.
-Lastly, this jam session each morning gives me a few minutes of peace to reflect on my joys and concerns before I begin my day.

The reason I am telling you this is because this morning during my jam session, I was listening to a song that spoke to me.  It is called, "By Your Side" by Tenth Avenue North. The whole song is amazing and definitely worth a Youtube search. However, there was one line that resonated with me and it simply says, "why are you trying to earn grace?"

This is one of those questions that we should all ask ourselves. Why are we trying to work for something that we could never possibly be able to earn? If we were admitted to Heaven or forgiven for our sins based on who did and did not deserve God's immeasurable grace, then we would all be out of luck.

So, guess what? I don't deserve the love of Christ and neither do you! Sounds harsh right? It's actually just the opposite.  We should all be blown away by the fact that God is willing to give us such a priceless gift and we have to do absolutely nothing for it! Now does that mean we have the green light to run around all Girls Gone Wild just because we know that at the end of the day God will still love and forgive us? Absolutely not! The only way we can really reap the rewards of God's forgiveness is if we repent; the only way we can repent is if we are sincerely sorry for the sin we have committed; if you are sincerely sorry then you ask for forgiveness with the intent of not committing that sin again...do you see where I'm going with this?


So today, ask yourself: why are you trying to earn grace? You can't and you will never be able to. That's the beauty of following Christ: He gives us things we don't deserve because He loves us. So, don't pout because you aren't good enough or cry out in frustration because you can never do enough.  All God asks is that we give Him all that we are, imperfect sinners, and He, in return, will give us all that He has, eternal life and unconditional love.  That sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me!

If Patience is a Virtue, I am not very Virtuous...

"Patience is a virtue." Ah, those sage words of wisdom that reveal the meaning of life. To say I am being facetious here would be an understatement.  I probably hate that phrase more than anything in the world.  It is a saying that parents tell whiny children when they want their dessert before their broccoli and not after. It is a saying that boyfriends tell their persistent girlfriends who have booked the church before they've even gotten a ring. It is a saying that I, as a teacher, tell my students daily when they badger me for graded tests a day after they have taken them.  It is a saying that I often mumble begrudgingly to myself when things aren't happening as quickly as I would like them to.

God gave me a lot of things, but patience is not one of them. And if the possession of patience classifies you as a virtuous person, consider me a heathen. I was that little kid who stood beside you and repeatedly poked your shoulder while you were having a conversation with someone else until your arm was so sore that you stopped mid-sentence to scream "WHAT IS IT, MAGGIE?!"

My impatience has really been an issue in my relationship with Christ. You see, God doesn't really respond well to temper tantrums (trust me, I've tried).  I can pout, stamp my feet and even give Him the silent treatment, and He ain't budging.  God gives answers in His own timing and not according to my personal agenda.  Sometimes God doesn't give answers at all.

The closer I grow to Christ, the more He seems to press the point of patience on my heart.  I heard once to never pray for patience, because the second you do, God will give you something to test your patience.  Well, God, bring it! Here I am, praying for patience. I am praying for patience with You, with friends and family and especially for patience with myself. I am praying for the patience to accept that just because things don't happen when I want them to, does not mean they aren't happening right on time.

I pray that I will stop looking at my watch and start looking up. It's all on Your time Lord, not mine.