November 18, 2022
Stephanie Nanton
Luke 8 : 5-15
Are you good ground? Are you along the path? Are you rocky ground? Are you thorny ground? Do you ever notice whenever you get finished learning or receiving a great piece of information, it’s almost immediate that you’re faced with something that tests you in the very area you just got finished learning about? Or maybe sometimes when you learn something, you quickly forget what you’ve learned?
For instance, just before the chaotic moments of the racial warfare that was going on, I heard a message about grace, and how God consistently gives us mercy and grace daily. There are many powerful messages from the Bible that teaches about forgiving those who trespass against us, and to pray for and love our enemies, to pass on to others, the same grace that has been given to us. If we really reflect on these messages, and compare how we live up to them, can you really say that you’ve perfected them? Have you perfected it in the past? Have you perfected it in the present? Do you have confidence that you’ll perfect it in the future? In other words, are you perfect? Do you still find yourself making mistakes? When someone gets on my last nerve, I call it showing my “black side” if you step to me wrong. It takes a great and powerful Spirit to function this way in the world we currently live in.
So, I don’t know about you, but I tend to get rejuvenated when I’ve learned about something new that can help me be a better citizen or person in life. I get excited about seeds of information that has reminded me how I should conduct myself when faced with circumstances that call for me to show grace. And then…. BAM!! Here comes an ugly, sometimes giant, sometimes scary, sometimes hurtful, sometimes worrisome circumstance, that has me at a fork in the road. That has me wanting to pull out my “black side.” Which road am I going to take? The signs on each of these roads are clear…. the road of Grace, Love, Peace? or the road of Unforgiving, Hate, War?
Or, how about when you tell someone that you love them, with all your heart, and then something comes along to test that love. Or maybe you’re a person who doesn’t hate anyone, and you feel that you’re not capable of hating, and then someone or something comes along that spew hateful, threatening words at you, that causes you to feel defensive.
It’s like there is this process set in place to show us just how much did we really learn about grace? Just how much of the information did we allow to take root in our hearts, our spirits? Just how much do we really know about ourselves until we are faced with these challenging circumstances?
My thought is, if we didn’t pass the test, we must go back and reflect on what did we missed. What does this say about who you truly are in this moment? What do you have to change? You have to go back and study again until what you need to learn sinks in your heart and spirit. So, when you go back again and take the test, and you pass it, then you know that it’s in you. Grace actually resides in you, and it is something you can and are able to extend. The Bible says we are capable through Christ to function in grace. Think about…. if you’re capable of being angry, hateful, worried, loving, peaceful, giving, anti-social, social, brave, scared, weak, strong, fast, slow, and on and on….you’re capable of grace. It’s just a matter of choice. How do you choose to be in life?
According to the Bible, God gave us the precious gift of choices. We get to choose who and how we want to be. God says in His word that we are who He says we are. More than conquerors, capable of doing all things through Christ who strengthens us. Once you’ve been tested, in whatever area in life, you’re able to move on to tougher circumstances or tests that will challenge you even greater than the one before.
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