Grace keeps gripping me...

God is so faithful. Virtually every morning I wake up with the wonderful reminder that God's "mercies are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness." Shortly following this precious reminder I am struck with the thought, "I am weak." I find it amazing how quickly I lose sight of what God wants me to see.

Grace is my lifeline to God. I cannot access God, or enjoy fellowship with Him, apart from His infinite grace. His grace offers me all I need to succeed each day and live in harmony with His will. It truly is mind boggling to think that God includes me in His sovereign plan. He gives me purpose. What grace.

Grace is also my strength for living. I really am weak. I am frail in my humanity and find myself continually fighting the battle for my mind. But grace ushers in God's power to defeat sin and proclaim victory in Christ. The battle for my mind is won by grace. And such victory brings about the revelation of God's glory working through my life. His power working in me is attractive to others, because they see God shining through.

Is grace evident in your life? God wants it to be. Grace can change you, renew you, make you whole. That is God's desire for each of us - wholeness in Him. It's a wonderful thing to rest in the grace of the Almighty.

Resting peacefully,

jonathan

Better late than never...

This has been a busy six weeks. I had minor surgery the beginning of July and was laid up for nearly two weeks due to recovery complications. I played catch up at the office for the following two weeks, and now find myself bogged down with what is sure to be the busiest month since our ministry was founded. Surprisingly, I'm not worried.

As behind as I have felt in these past weeks I have also been learning much about the steady nature of God. Nothing shakes Him. Nothing. He is not alarmed when I am "out of commission." He isn't shocked when I'm backed up at work. His purposes go on. Funny how I can think so much of myself, only to realize (once again) that it's not all about me.

However, there is another aspect of God's nature that I have also seen recently. He wants to include me in His plans. There are some things He wants to do in and through my life that He is willing to wait on me to accomplish. What amazing grace! Isn't it wonderful that God is so patient that He would choose times to wait for my involvement rather than rush forward on His own. I would do well to learn from the Master's example!

So, here I sit. Pressed under the weight of overdue tasks, but not crushed. God has patiently led me to this time and place for His purposes and plans. The privilege is mine to be called a son of God and partner in His wonderful work.

How do you respond to such a high calling? I hope you know it's better to be late than never show up...

jonathan