As the scene unfolded, it looked like this young man was about to be fired.
Even though the employee deserved
to be let go because of his un-professionalism, the employer decided to retrain
the fellow and give him a second chance.
The worker was so grateful for the opportunity that he promised to
change his work ethics and comply with the company.
Those who were watching the
program may not have agreed with the owner’s decision, but the man was elated
that he experienced grace and mercy that day.
Welcome new friends this week
from: (the USA) Washington,
Minnesota, Colorado, New Jersey and the Ukraine.
I hope that you are showing signs of growth in your
Inward Journey. Please continue to share this site along with praying for your
brothers and sisters of faith following Daily Favor from around the globe.
Don’t miss out on this week’s challenge
(below). View Q & A
Grace Denied
Since beginning this Inward Journey toward a
stronger relationship with the Lord (and learning about ourselves), I have been
thinking and viewing circumstances differently.
One thing I’m doing a lot more of is asking questions and contemplating
the way God might see a situation.
Last week while “Remembering the Birds”
(last week's challenge) and how God shows them favor in caring for them, I
began researching my own life in caring for others.
The word grace and favor kept coming to mind as I played out situations
from past experiences. How had I cared
for others in showing them grace or favor? Then I thought about something a bit scarier.
What if the amount of grace we have available to us solely
depended on how much grace we deposited into “a grace card” much like a debit or
pay pal account? In other words, what if
the amount of grace we received depended on the amount we gave (showed) to others?
Would grace be denied to us if we failed
to make regular deposits? I don’t even want to think along those lines!
Some of us would always be
overdrawn on our grace card. Others
might be maxed out and would stop showing grace until the account was evened
out a bit. Maybe a few would have some holding in reserve for emergencies. Frightening isn’t it?
I’m glad God doesn’t operate that
way, but extends our grace credit limit, even if we haven’t been making the
payments into the account. He is always gracious,
loving and willing to extend His grace card to us.
Is it Grace or
Mercy? ... or both
When writing this I realized that
some people may not understand the difference between grace and mercy, so
briefly I’ll try to explain with this comparison. Take a look at the definitions of the two
words according to the Bible dictionary.
Grace: God’s free and unmerited favor toward sinful
humanity (people); also see favor.
Mercy: A blessing that is an act of Divine Favor or compassion
withholding of the punishment or judgment our sin deserves; also see compassion
or forgiveness.
Grace is favor given to any
person God desires for His purpose. It
is not based on whether we deserve it or not. This is what we received when we were forgiven of our sins and became born again believers. Grace isn't something that can be earned, but freely given out of love.
If I show someone favor, it’s not
always because I like or even know the person.
I may demonstrate Christ-like behavior through grace simply because I
know it’s the kind, nice or right thing to do. It’s not even based on the
individual most of the time.
Then there are other times however,
when I specifically want to do someone a favor and show grace toward them just
because I care about them.
Mercy on the other hand, is
extending grace (favor) in place of a punishment and granting a pardon. Jesus had mercy on us when He died on the cross for our sins. He took the punishment we deserved by taking our place on the cross.
If you have received Jesus as your Savior, you will never be punished by God for your sin.
We see more examples of this in the
scriptures don’t we? However, for modern
day purposes, the illustration I mentioned previously was such a case where
mercy was given instead of dismissal.
When we extend grace and mercy to someone, we represent and demonstrate the character of God. It's another way to draw close to Him in our Inward journey.
Throne of Favor
(Grace)
In following the right path with God so
we can fulfill our journey, the Bible encourages us to enter into God’s throne
room.
Not only are we to come boldly, but we are expected to enter shamelessly, confidently and courageously.
“So let us come boldly
to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive His mercy, and we will
find grace to help us when we need it most.” (Hebrews 4:16 NLT)
Why is it important for us to
approach God’s throne of favor? The
writer of Hebrews explains it clearly. “That
we will find favor when we need it in any situation.” (emphasis mine)
See, our High Priest is Jesus. He
understands our weaknesses, because He faced the same tests and trials we do.
The difference, He never sinned. (Hebrews 4:15 NLT)
Jesus knows that we are going to
need that “grace card” of favor to complete our journey. That’s why He makes it available to all who
will believe and act on His Word.
Grace Card Levels
Look back on how many times you should
have been fired or punished when you messed up, but weren’t. Have you even been let off the hook for something
you did to a friend, sibling, boss or parent?
I know I have.
In my life I have seen and
experienced the different sides or levels of grace. You probably have also:
Receiving
Grace
Witnessing
Grace
Extending
Grace
Where & When to Show Grace
There is a scene from a Christian
western movie I saw many years ago, where a man who had committed a crime was
set free.
I can’t even remember the name of the movie, but I’ll never forget
the line Pastor Willie George (yep, that’s his real name) spoke when he
released the villain,
“Today you found
the grace of God.”
The town wanted to do evil for
evil. Instead the man didn’t carry out
what they could have or wanted to do, but instead chose to show grace (favor)
and mercy (forgiveness or pardoned).
It’s easy to respond negatively
when we are mistreated, harmed or abused.
That’s “normal” the world would say.
However, not acting in grace or mercy isn’t God’s way.
Showing grace is bestowing favor
on humanity whether they deserve it or not.
It’s different than mercy, but includes it.
Noah found grace (favor) in the
eyes of the Lord. We can find grace
(favor) also if our hearts are right before God. God sends grace to us and causes others to
show us favor. Sometimes they don’t even
know why they’re doing it, but say “I
feel I should do this for you.” (Genesis 6:8)
If we are to mature on our
journey, we have to stop acting the normal way of society, and do something
differently like extending the grace card on a regular basis.
This Week’s challenge: Share the Grace Card!
Make a huge love deposit into your grace
account this week.
Instead of doing things the way you used to, try a new
approach (remember A.N.A. from past teachings) by utilizing your
grace card. It yields a great profit!
When someone cuts you off in
traffic, don’t get angry, but let them pass.
While waiting in line at the
checkout, motion for others to go before you.
Show grace when a co-worker or
boss mistreats you and buy them a cup of coffee or a snack. Say something compassionate like:
“I thought you could use this today.”
If your kids are about to be sent
to the moon by you, take a deep breath … and calmly pull out your grace card.
Don't forget to generously disperse a little extra grace and mercy on that spouse that jammed the groceries into the freezer, causing the frozen spinach to fall out on the floor.
Happily pick it up, wash it off and put it back in the freezer. Remember they "favored" you with a dozen red roses this morning!
Recognize when you have received
grace. Second, take notice of when you
have witnessed grace happening. Purposely
look around to witness others showing grace and favor.
Finally, ask God to show
you ways you can extend grace, mercy and favor on someone else.
Be sure that you are making more
deposits than withdrawals into your grace card account, so there will be some
in there when you need it the most.
Grace, grace God’s grace.
His amazing grace and love flows down and covers me … it covers you!
His amazing grace and love flows down and covers me … it covers you!
Grace Flows Down
Until next time, deposit favor into others.
Maybe
you don’t know the Living God that I know, but would like to have this kind of
favor in your life also. Click on the
above tab “Tell Me About Jesus” for
more information on becoming a child of the Savior.
Content and Image Copyright
from Favored1. Do not copy. A.N.A. logo by J.C.Penney, Inc.
Scripture reference was taken from the New King James Bible Version provide by Bible Gateway.
Image credit: Google Images Creative
Common License if not specified. Pastor George episodes of the Gospel Bill Show can be seen on You Tube.
