Posts Tagged ‘grace’

Live a life of extravagance!

by Mary O. Moss

No! You haven’t happened upon the wrong column! This is, indeed, Frugal Fridays! So why would I be advising readers to live extravagantly? The answer is not about money. It’s not about acquiring anything and everything we see or want! Nor is it about throwing lavish parties, celebrating recklessly or living foolishly. The extravagant life we are called to is one grounded in, and in celebration of, God’s great and amazingly extravagant grace!

“God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you’re ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done. As one psalmist puts it, He throws caution to the winds, giving to the needy in reckless abandon. His right-living, right-giving ways never run out, never wear out. This most generous God who gives seed to the farmer that becomes bread for your meals is more than extravagant with you. He gives you something you can then give away, which grows into full-formed lives, robust in God, wealthy in every way, so that you can be generous in every way, producing with us great praise to God” (2 Corinthians 9:8 The Message).

Yes, it is important to be good stewards of our money and our possessions, our time and our talents. There is another principle at work here, though!

Extravagance is defined as: exceeding the bounds of reason; going beyond what is deserved or justifiable. Because of God’s extravagant gift of His grace – the undeserved and unjustified gift that we could never earn or merit, we can go beyond the bounds of reason fully and completely in every aspect of our lives. Share friendship—invest in it wholeheartedly. Lavishly shower others with love and kindness.

Generously and with reckless abandon, spread the peace of Christ and the knowledge of our Heavenly Father with every deed and thought. Share God’s limitless and endless grace. What is our model for such extravagant gift-giving? It happened on the Cross over 2000 years ago. God gave up His beloved and precious Son so that we might have the extravagant blessing of eternal life in heaven!

While we may not throw confetti and send out invitations to a party, there are ways we can be generous and share our blessings with others without being reckless or foolish.  We don’t have to spend money we don’t have to buy gifts for friends and relatives. Our time and our presence are probably what they desire anyway.

A birthday card (even far away friends and family can receive an e-card) and a home-made birthday cake are rare commodities these days. Include in the card a note indicating you’ll be walking in an autism walk or the Susan G. Komen race for a cure, or participating in some other fundraiser in their honor. Even on a tight budget we can collect ‘box tops for education’ or Campbell’s soup labels for education. It’s not about how much we give, anyway! It’s about why. It’s about Jesus. And He is more than enough!


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Posted in Daily Living, Frugal Friday, Mary Moss | 4 Comments »

My Feelings Were Hurt

by Kim Avery

I have a casual out-of-town acquaintance that I connect with infrequently over the phone. She is funny, witty, and wise. I like my friend, and I wish I could see her more. But we are two very busy women, so each call is carefully planned and scheduled in advance. That’s okay, anticipation is half the fun.

A few months ago, my friend didn’t show up for our scheduled call. Very odd. I emailed her right away but got no response. Doubly odd. Rumor had it that she was fine, so in the busyness of life, I let it go.

Hurt Feelings

Four weeks later, she emailed again. No apology, no explanation, she just wanted to plan our next call. Sure, why not? I wrote back, put the call on the calendar, and when the day arrived, I waited.

I waited and waited.

She didn’t call. Feeling a bit neglected and incredibly petty, I didn’t even email her to find out why she chose not to call.

Occasionally, when I would think of her I would feel sad, but truthfully, life went on.

Last week, she popped into my email box again. After just a passing reference to having stood me up twice, she said she was eager to reconnect.

BEWARE! SIN AHEAD

What!? Reconnect? Where was the apology, the explanation, the groveling at my feet? My time is valuable and my friendships are too. But neither seemed particularly important to her.

This was inconvenient. It was painful. It was uncomfortable. I was hurt.

I ignored the email for three days. (I warned you that there was sin ahead.) Every time I looked at it, I felt icky about the whole thing. And for three days, I tried to justify blowing her off, because after all, she blew me off first. Very unattractive, but true.

Then God…

Then God, in all His grace, intervened. He gently but firmly reminded me of all the times that I have neglected Him (probably about 200 million to date.) I flashed back to the times when I made promises to Him that I didn’t keep, dates I set but never kept, mornings when He was ready to speak to me through His Word, but I wasn’t there.

He reminded me of all the Sundays when I had publicly prayed, “Father, forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who have trespassed against us.”  I hang my head in shame.

Suddenly, her lapse doesn’t seem so bad.

I emailed my friend back today. I didn’t say a word about what she had done, why would I?

I am the recipient of God’s lavish, undying, ever-replenishing love. I have plenty to share.

How is God calling you to extend His grace today? Let me know in the comment section below.


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Posted in *Kim Avery, Daily Living | 2 Comments »

Marriage Monday — Uproot Your Root of Bitterness

by Julie Gorman

“To err is human; to forgive, divine.” Though not necessarily found directly within Scripture, this phrase is deeply profound and contains the key to freedom and a happy marriage.

Upset couple back-to-back

Ever wish you could redo parts of your life? If I could redo parts of mine, I would err on the side of grace, extending forgiveness even when it wasn’t sought, loving with purity even when it wasn’t returned. I would simply not hold on to offenses—often easier said than done; yet as I look back on the seasons of my life I regret not forgiving more quickly. Forgiveness is a choice and is a mandate for marriage—but all too often we fail to realize our own shortcomings until it’s too late.

Satan is especially crafty with bitterness—its very core is manipulative and destructive. Unfortunately, bitterness often occurs as a result of the intentional harm inflicted by another person. The deception of bitterness is that in some way we maintain the upper hand by remembering or holding on to an offense—what a lie.

Despite our natural inclination to hold on to offenses, God commands us to forgive as He has forgiven. Colossians 3:13 says, “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

But…forgiveness can be tough. So, you may be asking, “How? How do you rid yourself of bitterness, and freely forgive?” Allow me to share five steps to help you in the process:

1.  Submit your pain to God. Sometimes our pain is expressed in stages. The severity of the wound often determines the length of the healing process—don’t give up. God is near and ready to help remove your pain.

2.  Confess any hatred or anger you may be harboring.  Address your issues head on. Express your emotions to God in simple sentences and ask for help and the ability to forgive. Vocalize forgiveness out loud. It’s good to hear yourself say it. “I forgive…for… I choose to remember this offense no longer.”

3.  Remember God is your defender. He is faithful to protect you. Don’t take vengeance into your own hands. God will protect you so much better than you can. Ask for Him to intervene on your behalf. And to help you to not hold on to offenses.

4.  Recognize you can’t control another person’s actions. Each of us will give an account for our own actions, not one another’s. Submit your life to the principles of God’s Word and allow Him to convict your offender. Read passages on the mercy of God to help renew your mind and fight the battle that wages war against your emotions.

5.  Finally, freedom starts with a choice to forgive and release bitterness. We can’t change our past, but we need NOT be a victim to it. If we harbor bitterness it only destroys us; it ties unites our lives with our offender, and rips at our soul. So, even if you don’t feel like forgiving you can begin with Lord I’m willing to be willing. Be honest with God and ask for Him to help.

Forgiveness and releasing bitterness isn’t easy…but it is liberating. Forgiveness is essential in marriage because no matter how great your partner is or isn’t, they aren’t perfect. And true love keeps no record of wrongs:

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, NIV

Father, fill us with the grace to forgive, and to love as you love us.


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Posted in Daily Living, Julie Gorman, Marriage, Marriage Monday | 2 Comments »

I Can’t Do It All

by Kim Avery

“I can do it all by myself.” When my children were two years old, this was a common cry, along with:  “Let me do it.” “It’s my turn.” “Don’t help me. I’m big now.” Their message came across very loud and very clear. Independence, strength, and ability were good. Weakness was bad.

Flash forward a few decades and I find these same words now coming from my mouth (or at least my heart.) “I can handle this.” “No problem, I’ve got it all under control.” “Sure, I can do that.” The message? Kim likes to be independent. Kim values being strong. Kim takes great pride in her abilities.

Kim is wrong! (My husband may just print that phrase out and frame it!)

Receiving much needed help from a friend

If you know anything about my week last week, (see The Letter Bomb), you know that the circumstances of my life had once again stripped off my confident veneer and exposed the raw, unattractive neediness lurking beneath. When cancer strikes a friend – I can’t fix it. I can’t push rewind on time and undo things I wish I hadn’t done. And I can’t make the world obey my will. I want to. But I can’t.

All this weakness led me to the conclusion that last week was a very bad week. Until.

Until God graciously reminded me that…

It’s not up to me, but Him

“My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” (II Corinthians 12:9)

I am to be still and wait

Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. (Exodus 14:13a,14)

He will come – He will rescue

When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord rescues them from them all. (Psalm 34:17-19)

Once again, I will soar

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. (Isaiah 40:28-31)

Wow.

I forgot that God’s call to me is not to be competent, accomplished, polished, and strong. Instead, God wants me to despair over myself, embrace my weakness, and then run to Him to meet all my needs. “When I am weak, then I am strong.”

I guess last week wasn’t so bad after all. What a blessed relief to loudly say, “I can’t do it but He can.”


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Posted in *Kim Avery, Daily Living | 7 Comments »

Of Adequacy and Sufficiency

by Susan Fleming

For we are His workmanship
created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand,
that we should walk in them.
Ephesians 2:10

Not that we are adequate in ourselves
to consider anything as coming from ourselves,
but our adequacy is from God,
who made us adequate..
2 Corinthians 3:5

He who did not spare His own Son,
but delivered Him up for us all,
how will He not also with Him
freely give us all things?
Romans 8:29

And God is able to make all grace abound to you,
that always having all sufficiency in everything,
you may have an abundance for every good deed.
2 Corinthians 9:8

Have you ever been tasked with accomplishing something without being given the resources to do it? What a frustration! If only you had the money… the time… the help… If only…

What could you accomplish if you had everything you needed? If you had all the skills, all the contacts, all the resources required? What would you do, what desire of your heart would you fulfill, if there were no obstacles?

God has given you a task, something He has been planning for you to do since before the world began. Think for a minute what it might be… Maybe it’s something way bigger than you think you can accomplish. Maybe it is something seemly insignificant but tedious beyond your ability to endure. Maybe it is something painful, or challenging, or overwhelming. Maybe it is even the unbearable daily-ness of life. Whatever it is, you are not adequate in yourself to accomplish it.

But God has made you adequate.  He has supplied you with all the ability and resources you need to accomplish what He has called you to do.  And He’s not like a corporate watchdog, begrudging you every paper clip and rubber band.  He liberally supplies what is needed.  Even patience and endurance.

As a guarantee, Paul argues (in Romans 8:29) from the greater to the lesser. He says that since God gave us His own Son, allowed Him to be sacrificed for us, which was the greatest thing He could do… certainly He will give us lesser things, things we need to accomplish the good works He has called us to do.

And further, in 2 Corinthians 9:8, Paul talks about God’s liberality.  We are loved by a God of abundance.  We are cherished by a God who enables us with His lavish provision, not just to minimally accomplish what we are called to do, but to succeed beyond our wildest dreams and imaginations.

Now, let’s personalize this. Think again about something God has called you to do, or to endure, or to be. Let me give you some examples… being a single parent, enduring a painful illness, losing a physical ability, homeschooling, taking care of an aging parent, experiencing a financial crisis, loss and grief… Take what God is calling you to walk through right now, and apply this verse to your circumstance:

And my God is able to make ALL His grace abound to me,
that ALWAYS having ALL sufficiency in _____________,
I will have an abundance for every good thing I need to do.

For further consideration:

  1. In what area of your life have you been feeling less than adequate – and have perhaps been beating yourself up because of it?
  2. How can the promise of God’s sufficiency make a difference in your circumstance?
  3. What area of your life will God’s sufficiency make the most difference?
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