God's Grace - Devotional

Read This: The Lord’s loyal kindness never ceases; his compassions never end. They are fresh every morning; your faithfulness is abundant! “My portion is the Lord,” I have said to myself, so I will put my hope in him. (Lamentations 3:22-24)

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Think: It’s hard to wrap our minds around the grace of God. We don’t live in a world where grace is really practiced or even valued. As a result we don’t often expect to receive grace—not from the people around us and certainly not from a holy and perfect God.

We may look at ourselves and think how clueless, weak, and narrow-minded we seem to God. How many times do we fail in the same areas? We can’t hide who we are and it’s ridiculous to think we can somehow put on a front for God. He created us and knows exactly how our minds and hearts work. “For he knows what we are made of; he realizes we are made of clay” (Psalm 103:14).

In some ways, we’re right to think of ourselves as unworthy of God’s grace. We are sinful and we do mess up again and again. Truthfully, humanity is a mess. But Psalm 103:13 brings a refreshing perspective to the reminder that we’re made of dirt. It reads, “As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on his faithful followers.” We aren’t deserving of God’s love, but He lavishes it on us anyway. It’s not because of who we are, but because of who He is.

Knowing even the darkest corners of our hearts, God loves us so much that He was willing to die for us. And for those who chose to follow Him, God sends His Holy Spirit to indwell us. He doesn’t turn away from our mess; He lives in it. And He is lovingly waiting to help us clean it up.

Ask: In a world so absent of grace, what are some practical and specific ways you can extend the grace you’ve freely received to others?

Pray: Spend some time just thanking God for His grace and praising Him for who He is.