December 03, 2007
5:00 PM:
grace
I've got grace on the brain today.
I get really impatient with people who just don't get it. I know it's a heavy subject, but it seems so simple to me. That doesn't make it less amazing, but it feels simple. We're screwy, God is good, and He forgets our bad stuff. So why can't we forget it, too?
I don't really struggle with the grace concept all that much, but I have friends who do. Sometimes it makes me want to take them by the shoulders and give them a good shaking. I wish there were a way to convey the simplicity of it that is in my mind. I know it doesn't come down to just experience. These are people who have definitely experienced and appreciated grace. I'm not sure why it's simple for me, but I'm glad it is. Watching someone struggle with guilt and shame is taking its toll on my own heart. It's a struggle to watch and not really understand without becoming very, very frustrated.
As far as the east is from the west! It's not so hard. The Lord took it from you and he threw it away. It never happened! Stop covering your face. Stop hiding. Stop being defeated. Be victorious! Because you are! You are free.
Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.
I get really impatient with people who just don't get it. I know it's a heavy subject, but it seems so simple to me. That doesn't make it less amazing, but it feels simple. We're screwy, God is good, and He forgets our bad stuff. So why can't we forget it, too?
I don't really struggle with the grace concept all that much, but I have friends who do. Sometimes it makes me want to take them by the shoulders and give them a good shaking. I wish there were a way to convey the simplicity of it that is in my mind. I know it doesn't come down to just experience. These are people who have definitely experienced and appreciated grace. I'm not sure why it's simple for me, but I'm glad it is. Watching someone struggle with guilt and shame is taking its toll on my own heart. It's a struggle to watch and not really understand without becoming very, very frustrated.
As far as the east is from the west! It's not so hard. The Lord took it from you and he threw it away. It never happened! Stop covering your face. Stop hiding. Stop being defeated. Be victorious! Because you are! You are free.
Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.
Labels: grace
I think people struggling with guilt are under the grip of someone else, our enemy. True and godly guilt leads to repentance, which leads to forgiveness and grace.
I think people may understand grace, but still feel so bad for whatever they do. They can't believe they did something so horrible. It weighs on them. But they're just lost.
Not realizing that healthy remorse leads to true repentance, and freedom!
Mmmm... amazing to get it though? Isn't it?
Stupid blogger error messages! I won't retype my entire original comment, but here it is in a nutshell:
I think there are a couple things that can prevent people from "getting" grace--temperament and past baggage. Not everyone who struggles with grace is in "the grip of the enemy" (although I have seen this with people who have continual, debilitating guilt issues. That's not healthy, and I think it's a sign of a deeper problem that God wants to heal).
Personally, I tend to struggle with grace, and I think it's more of a personality thing. By nature, I'm a perfectionist and I focus on the negative. Kind of the opposite of a grace mindset, so when I started to understand grace on a tangible level, it pretty much blew my mind. It still does not come naturally for me, and it still blows my mind in those rare moments when I feel/experience it in a tangible way.
So, on the one hand, when I hear people say "it's not so hard to understand," there's a part of me that feels like going, "Yes huh!" because I can totally understand and relate to the struggle. It might make me sad when I see people really struggling with it, but it's not necessarily frustrating to me.
But on the other hand, I think you're right that there's a point where we all (regardless of our past or personality) need to take a step of faith and humility and accept what God says is true. It might seem all spiritual and humble to say "God could never forgive me--I'm way too bad" but in the end it's our unbelief and our pride that refuses to accept grace. So in those cases it can be frustrating. I have rebuked a couple guilt-ridden friends who kept feeding me that line :)
For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.
Romans 6:14