A Gift to Give
To know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. ––Ephesians 3:19
Grace. It is a gift from God and it is a gift to be passed forward. Jesus illustrated this in the Parable of the Wicked Servant (Matthew 18:25-31). His point: You didn’t deserve grace but now that you have it, you better give it as liberally as you received it. If we don’t, this same thing grieves the Holy Spirit. The fact is, the Holy Spirit heals by leading and prompting all believers to show to others what God has shown them in the person of Christ.
One of my favorite episodes in the Word is when Jesus forgives the thief on the cross. Jesus saw that His heart was repentant, and so He gave Him grace. The thief knew that Jesus didn’t deserve to be crucified, and saw beyond his own pain to acknowledge that. Is it possible for us to do that for others?
By honestly and sincerely saying a prayer we can restore equilibrium in this area. This prayer acknowledges that, in spite of our best intentions, we can sadden and disappoint the Holy Spirit. Pray this prayer as a simple realignment, or if a relationship is challenging you in the area of forgiveness.
Holy Spirit, thank you for helping me feel God’s grace, mercy, and acceptance. I am sorry for not reproducing this experience more in my relationship with others. I don’t want to grieve you by being greedy with your grace. I want God’s grace to flow to me and through me. Remind me of what you went through on the cross for me. Remind me of my mission here on earth to be an agent of that same grace. Help me to let go of resentments and trade them in for your grace.
Make me an encouragement like you, building others up in simple ways—with my wife, with my children, with those not like me, and with those you will bring into my life today. As you heal me with Your grace and love, explode that healing out of me to heal my relationships. I don’t want to grieve you; I want just to please you, Amen.