God’s Grace to Help Us

It was a lovely afternoon birthday picnic at a park. Abigail, my six-year-old granddaughter, came up to myself, my daughter Melissa and her husband Scott sitting over to one side of the delicious food spread out on tables.

Abigail had a paper boat plate in her hands full of potato chips.

As she approached, she said to Scott, “Uncle Scott, I’ll give you a chip if you give me your chair.” Uncle Scott replied, “Nope. But you can sit on my lap.”

As she happily climbed up onto Uncle Scott, who is 6 foot 3 inches, he said to her “Better you sit on my lap than I sit on yours. I’d break your legs.”

Her Aunt Melissa watching all of this, then asked Abigail, “Did you win?”

Abigail did not hesitate with her reply, “Of course, because Uncle Scott did not get a chip!”

It’s funny how humanity in many situations feels like they must win, must have the upper hand.

That’s not God’s Kingdom ways though.

We don’t have to compete for the only chairs available. In God’s kingdom He desires us to put ourselves last. To put others first. That’s very difficult to do dealing with some people. I’m being honest here. Are there not some people in your life, your family, your work environment that rub you up the wrong way? They just seem to be nasty, difficult people, and you don’t feel like being gracious to them.

That’s where God’s grace to help us be Christians comes in. Jesus asks us not to take an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. No fighting, literally or otherwise.

Love your enemy. Found in the book of Matthew.

But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

Matthew 5:44 NRSV

“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.

Luke 6:27-28 NRSV

Be generous to those who are not.

All these actions are a choice to do good, it’s not a necessity for a warm feeling to accompany the actions.

It is a decision you make in how you want to live and act.

Why not pray for your enemies?

Pray for the world leaders who are making selfish decisions for their own country, their own reputations. Not caring about the consequences for the rest of the world.

Praying for people who hurt you changes your heart and hopefully changes theirs.

Leave the judgement to God who will deal with all people  one day and ask Him to provide you with grace and mercy.

Just look at yourself and live the way God would have you live.

May these jottings from my journal inspire you to believe in and fall in love with Christ- the hope of the world, as stated in Jeremiah 17:7, ‘Blessed is the man who believes and trusts in and relies on the Lord and whose hope and confident expectation is the Lord!’

Love

Rosemary

Every week groups of ladies meet together to chat about the things I raise in my weekly blog post and to chat about life in general. We call these ‘Heart Connect’ groups.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Are there situations in life where you want to win? What kind of situations are these?

Do you struggle to put winning aside at times so that you can be gracious to others?

How can you ask God for grace in situations where you struggle to put yourself last?