Grace and Peace

 I've been studying Galatians with a group of women from my church. An amazing group of women with our ages ranging from 19 - 60's. This is important because I've learned SO much with this rowdy bunch. They are wise, authentic and loving and I am deeply blessed by every one of them. 

I've had a thought lingering that I can't shake from the intro to Galatians.  "Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen" Galatians 1:3-5 

Leave it to Paul to go ahead and present the gospel message in his short introduction of a letter. There is much goodness here, but the words I am stuck on lately are grace and peace. The enduring word commentary says that Paul used this exact phrase five other times in the New Testament. It was a "familiar greeting, drawing from the traditional greetings in both Greek culture (grace) and Jewish culture (peace)."

I'm no Hebrew or Jewish scholar, but I do know the Jews have historically greeted each other with the Hebrew word shalom. According to the University College London shalom means more than just peace, but extends to good health and stems from a root word that means complete or perfect. 

Isaiah 26:3 says "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you." 

The jews understanding of peace with God was/is to fulfill the law. The law that was passed down from Moses, the Torah. They studied and meditated on the law. They strived to keep every law in an effort to have peace with God. 

This proved to be impossible. Enter Jesus.

Isaiah 53:6 says "All we, like sheep, have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way, and the Lord laid upon Him, the iniquity of us all." 

I find it fascinating that this scripture was thought to have been written somewhere between 740 and 686 BC. That's around 700 years before Christ. Whoa. The Him that Isaiah was referring to was not to come into the world for many years. 

Jesus said "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them." Matthew 5:17

In summary - man could never do enough or be "good" enough to reach the standard of God's holiness. Jesus Christ came into the world being fully God and fully man, lived a sinless life, was killed by the jews and then God the Father raised Him from the dead. In the death of Jesus, the penalty for yours and my sins was paid for. Jesus traded us - our sin for His righteousness. And that is enough. Now, anyone who believes in Christ and confesses Him is declared enough by God the Father. 

So back to Paul's greeting of grace and peace. Ephesians 2:8-9 says "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." 

Paul, who wrote Ephesians, points to Jesus in his greeting of grace and peace before he even mentions His name. The old testament pointed to Jesus long before He entered this world. The new testament points to Jesus, the life He lived and the life we have available in Him. 

I'm thankful to be living in a time of grace and peace. Those who only lived under the law, before Christ, only knew what was available to them at the time. Our generation lives in a time where grace and peace are made available to us by the loving sacrifice of Jesus, the son of God. It makes me wonder about the times to come and what will be available to those in His full and perfect presence. The time when He returns and restores man and the earth to perfection. Heaven on earth. 

All in all, in my ramblings and wonderings, I find Jesus is the center. Jesus is enough. You can follow the ways of Jesus too. It's all there for you. He is there for you, available to those who would seek and find. 

The Mark of Wisdom

 Wisdom is knowledge applied.

I've had some thoughts rattling around in my mind lately and figured I'd write them down and line them up. Sometimes it gives me better perspective and it always helps me process a thought or concept. 

Have you ever met a person who seemed to be full of information on a topic or all kinds of topics? There are certain people who have a passion for learning and they love to share what they've learned. Often times their sharing comes from a place of passion. 

I'm picturing myself at my local gym. WHY must I tell people what I see that needs correcting? First, I'm bound to be wrong sometimes or more and second, I don't want to be "that guy." The know it all who comes across aggressively to people. I hate the fact that I can do that sometimes. BUT, my passion for sharing what I believe to be correct form and movement often takes over. My intent is to benefit others and I'm compelled to share my thoughts. This is one example of a passionate know it all. 

Apply Grace Here.

Have you ever met a person and walked away from them thinking "whoa...they came on strong?" Maybe they seemed opinionated or talked a LOT. I think of this as clamoring for attention. To demand someone's attention. At first, they appear to have high self-esteem, but if you look deeper I believe you will find insecurity and fear to be at the helm. (All of a sudden, I'm using boat analogies..smh)

We all experience insecurity and fear. It's a part of the basic human experience. We just don't want it determining our actions and controlling our lives. 

I am learning to sit back and watch more often. As opposed to jumping to a judgement about something or someone, categorizing them, and then moving on. It's taken a lot of heartache to bring me to this place. Maybe heartache is a prerequisite to wisdom. Anyways, it's a practice and none of us ever arrives to the place of perfection. The moment we think we have it all figured out, we are served a slice of humble pie in the form of reality.

Somewhere along the way, I landed with the definition of wisdom as knowledge applied. You may know a lot about something (knowledge), but do you know how to apply that knowledge to reality, to a specific situation in every day life? 

You can read all of the books on marriage your heart desires but until you are married and doing life with someone, you can't really know deep down what marriage is like. It's like a college student fresh out of school about to face the "real world." No doubt, their education will benefit them down the road, but first they need experience to afford them opportunities to apply their education. 

I was looking up some verses on wisdom and this one in particular has always caught my attention. Proverbs 17:28 "Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues." I can't help but laugh at that verse! 

Well...yeah. Duh. 

And yet... 

it's profound

I have another verse I want to share here. I'm going to write it out in a couple of different versions. It's Proverbs 10:19 (BTW - Proverbs are considered wise sayings)

"Sin is not ended by multiplying words, but the prudent hold their tongues." NIV

"Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut." NLT

"When words are many, sin is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise." BSB

This leads me to question myself when I feel compelled to share advice with others. What is my motivation? And you know, sometimes I can't see that my innermost desire is to be seen in a good light. I want to be seen as knowledgeable. I like to be admired.

Ouch. Apply Humility Here.

I'm drawn to people with quiet confidence. I really enjoy learning about people in an open environment, where there is no agenda or ulterior motive. When I know they're not trying to prove themselves to me and I don't need to prove myself to them. I crave connections where we talk and listen to each other mutually. 

This is the kind of person I want to be. I want to show up for you in this way. I want people to experience me as a calm and confident person. I can't control how people experience me though. Everyone's lens is different and it's exhausting trying to fit people with a lens that will allow myself to be seen in a good light. I know. I could write a book about it. Pretty sure I have a diagnosis to confirm this about me. 

And that is where I apply more grace. I apply grace to myself and to others. And as soon as I think I'm wise in my own eyes (Proverbs 3:7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil) I pray the Lord will show me so I can turn from that prideful way of thinking. 

Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in humility that comes from wisdom. James 3:13

Humility is a marker of a life of wisdom. A desire to honor God and others above oneself. Let this be our heart's desire. Then we won't clamor for attention or our own way. Our knees will be quicker to bend and our heads to bow to the authority of God in our lives. And our hearts will be led by love. 

I write this for myself. The irony of this writing is not lost on me. Although, sharing our hearts with others shouldn't be seen as a negative thing. I'm so thankful to be surrounded with a community of people who are loving and open. 

I'd love to hear your thoughts or experiences! I wish I could sit down and talk to you over coffee about this. But for now, I'll keep writing in my online journal and hope someone else will read it and just maybe be stirred to deeper reflection or encouraged. 

Traditions of Old

I appreciate the way traditional churches have kept up with traditions that are meant to be seasonal reminders, set times, built into our schedules to turn our hearts back to God. Biblically I see this was originally established by God in the Old Testament. The first tradition I can think of that God established was the seventh day, a holy day of rest. He Himself rested and established this day as one mankind was to observe also. "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God." There were festivals and other holy days that were established throughout history. These were days set to bring us into remembrance of all the Lord had done. We have these dedicated times to remember because we have a tendency to forget. 

Over the years many people and church bodies have turned their backs on these route traditions because somewhere along the way they saw people relying on traditions instead of the God of the tradition. In an effort to remain authentic and free, they cast off the ways of old. How many times I have seen this over correction. A well-meaning effort that throws the proverbial baby out with the bath water. We are left with a generation of very few sacred traditions. In fact, the traditions we often celebrate are more cultural than holy. But I'll leave that thought for another time. 

I desire opportunities to confess sin, to worship without constraint, to fast and pray, to be reminded that I am connected to a very large group of people who believe in the one true God and have done so for many, many years. I have been grafted into a family, a royal priesthood and long to adopt the ways of old. I am learning, in my mature years, that there is freedom in boundaries and there is beauty in tradition. Something my younger self could not accept. 

My understanding is that Lent begins today, Ash Wednesday and lasts through Easter. It is a 40 (ish) day period set aside to focus on God. People typically choose to fast from or focus on something in particular to them. In prayerful consideration of this I am choosing to fast, if you will, from man's approval and focus on God's approval. This is something I struggle with on a regular basis and my hope is that this will stay at the forefront of my mind during these upcoming 40 days. 

Today I am thankful for new mercies. I thank God for shifting my perspective constantly and returning my wandering heart to Him time and time again. No doubt, this cycle will never end. But, praise God, He is faithful when I am not. Today I choose to step aside and see about this Lent season and look with curiosity and wonder at the people who observe it. May the Lord use this time to bring many wandering hearts and minds back to Himself.