It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness how I yearn for you all with affection of Christ Jesus.
Philippians 1:7-8, emphasis added
Are you a partaker of grace? Sometimes I think we just graze at grace. Rather than sitting down at the full table the Lord has offered us, we wander around nibbling at the easy-to-hold, bite size things we can hold in our hands. Paul honored the Philippian church as partakers of grace … they embraced the hard, painful grace. Could the same be said of us? Do we embrace the hard grace? Or do we merely want the “sample size” grace? Just enough to feel good. Far too often, I fear we, in the American church especially, are grazing at the grace table … and we are missing the fullness that only comes from being a partaker of grace.
Father, Teach us to long for grace. To embrace the messy grace and to linger even in the painful grace. Cause our hearts to be dissatisfied with the grace we can understand and to pursue the unfathomable grace that will never make sense but will always make us more like You. Thank You for inviting us to the lavish table of grace You have set before us … today, Lord, we answer the call to be partakers of grace. Show us the fullness of grace. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Heathahlee says
I needed to read this post today, Teri Lynne! Struggling with the hard grace today.