I’ve read books and blog posts and articles about grace for women, grace for mothers, grace for wives. I understand their place, I do. As women in various roles and seasons of our life, we all need grace. When the things on our to-do list actually require more hours than a day can accommodate, we need grace. When we allow comparisons to rob us of our joys and leave us feeling defeated, we need grace. When the person on the outside, the reflection staring back at us when we look in the mirror, doesn’t accurately reflect the person we are on the inside, we need grace.
The truth is, we need grace on a daily basis.
As I thought about the grace we freely accept, I couldn’t help but wonder, how much grace are we giving to others? From the people we love most to the people we work with to the person who bags our groceries.. The grace that God gave us wasn’t meant to stop, it wasn’t meant for us to pour freely over ourselves each and every day, without ever offering it to someone else.
God’s grace is unmerited, we don’t deserve it, yet He gives it freely. Sometimes, we are quick to receive and slow to give. We accept grace freely, but are often blinded by others who are in need of a little grace. I believe that the world would be sweeter if we’d offer up grace a little more freely.
Over the past week, I’ve prayed consistently for God to give me opportunities to pour out grace to other people. I’m usually so busy, so wrapped up in my own world that I don’t see those opportunities until after they pass. Honestly, I was a little frustrated with myself that I wasn’t seizing the opportunities as I watched them come right past me.
Then, on Sunday evening, Braylen spilled an entire bowl of cereal on the freshly swept and mopped floor. I could have made her pick them up, sure. I imagine those tiny Cheerios would have taken her sweet forever to pick up. She would have done it, I have no doubt. I could have brought out her high chair, the mess wouldn’t have happened had she not insisted that she sit in the barstool at the kitchen island. I could take a grand stand
Instead, I poured her a second bowl, slid her chair a little closer to the island, and grabbed the broom and dust pan. I cleaned it up quickly, maybe 2 minutes is all it took. She apologized for spilling it and thanked me for “sweeping up all those cereals.” I quietly thanked God for this moment, I was looking everywhere else, when the person I need to give grace to was right under my feet.
The reality is, I’m teaching her even when I think she’s not ready to learn, even when I think she’s too young to understand. One day, I’m going to tell her about grace, God’s grace. I want her to understand it when I tell her, not because I’ve explained it really well. I want her to understand grace because she has felt it, she’s knows what it looks like and she’s seen it in the midst of failures and triumphs. I want her to understand grace because she has lived it, in her home.
I’ve learned that giving grace is something I will have to work on daily. It’s something that, little by little, I can get better at, I can learn from it, and it can help me grow. Then, as my grace grows, I’ll be quicker to forgive, quicker to apoligize, I’ll be a better mother and wife to the two who give me more grace than I deserve. I don’t need to look for grand opportunities for grace, I have them right in front of me, I just need to work on giving it out more.
What a great reminder…I need to look at this in my life too. It is so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life. Great post 🙂
Such a great post, and a good reminder that anyone can appreciate. Thanks for sharing!
~lisa
Floating Along
Beautiful post, once again!
Fabulous post and what a great reminder.
This post pulled at me…I totally wrote about a similar thing just the other day. My two year old is the messiest little thing ever, but she isn’t that way on purpose. I want to pour out grace on her, even when cleaning up another mess makes me want to freak out. You’re a good Mom to clean up her cereal and pour her another bowl. 🙂
What a beautiful story and something that we all should work on and I’m now going to write that down in my prayer journal for myself!! I fall short of providing grace to others every day! Thank you for the sweet reminder and what a blessing to have the opportunity to provide your daughter with grace and her to show appreciation for that! You’re raising a beautiful little lady!
Ahhh. Such a good reminder. I have not been grace-giving today. Love this reminder!
What a beautiful post, thank you for sharing, I found it very refreshing. Matthew 10:8 “…Freely you have received, freely give.” It’s such a beautiful Biblical principal. We used to sing a song at church when I was a little girl, which I still remember word for word, because it was such a lovely song, “Freely, freely you have received, freely, freely give. Go in My Name and because you believe, others will know that I live.”
A couple more books to add to your list (for when you get a spare minute!
I’m not sure if you’ve heard of Lisa Bevere, she and husband John are pastors of a church in (maybe Colarado, please excuse my Aussie spelling), she is one of the BEST authors I’ve read, we studies her book, “Lioness Arising” last year, one of the most empowering books as a Christian women I’ve ever read. I also love her as she is such a down to earth Godly mother of four boys (as I am a mother of four boys under 7yrs). That book dramatically impacted my life as a wife and mother. (Their site is messengerinternational.org)
The other book is by a Singaporean pastor, Joseph Prince, who has a phenomenal gift on teaching about Grace, I have witnessed countless people in our church have their lives changed and set free just from hearing his teaching. He has such an intimate relationship with God, which he demonstrates as such an attainable thing, it’s infectious! His book, “Destined to Reign”, is a book as well as a devotional, it’s a bestseller in the Christian resources in Australia.
Sorry for such a long comment! God bless!
Thank you. Sometimes I focus too much on justice in my house. So glad that God gives us His grace as an example to live by. Even though we deserve to be dealt with “justly”, He has lavished His grace on us!
I needed that to start my day today!
thank you for this. it is a great reminder!
Beautifully written! 🙂
Jennifer- I don’t think I have EVER read a bad or disappointing post from you- like EVER!!! And this post is just a prime example of how you take time to think of exactly what to write with each post and that you can convey such incredible messages to your audience. I am so grateful for coming upon your blog and having been an avid reader for some time now because you continue to be an inspiration for me and I needed to read this post today and remind myself of the same thing you realized- that we are teaching our children even when we don’t realize it. So, thank you for writing this because it will resonate with me for a very long time.
Jennifer I thank and praise God everyday for you. Your are every mothers dream wife for their son. God blessed mine with you! I never worry if my son and grand children are cared for. I know they are because God cared enough for me that he placed you in our lives. I pray I will always be the mother-in-law you deserve. I love you! Thank you for being the woman God created you to be!