Once upon a time there was a woman who lived a consistently messy life. She tried hard to hold things together, but in every new day, no matter how fresh it felt at the beginning, at some point she always came to the end of herself and was reminded of her need for help and hope and second chances.
Sometimes the need felt smaller. Sometimes the need felt overwhelming. Yesterday in her life the need was overwhelming. And today, still dealing with the “hang-over” of her sin, well today the need was overwhelming as well.
But this time, this time she knows that “trying harder” is not the answer. Re-doubling her efforts to not sin and adding more rules to her life will not bring her healing. It will just condemn her all the more the next time she falls. This time she knows that replaying the scenario again and again in her mind and wallowing in her guilt is also not the answer. There is an enemy who would like nothing more than to convince her that she is doomed. She must walk away from him, even if she can’t silence him, and the further she walks the quieter his voice will be.
This time she’s going to handle her messiness the right way. This time she’s going to use it for beauty, to paint a beautiful canvas with her messy paints. This time she’s going to let her messiness woo her to her Savior. She’s going to say, “Yes, yes, I do need you. Yes, yes I am thankful for your grace. Yes, yes I do choose to walk in faith, that what I’ve done in the dark can not survive in the light of what you’ve done.
This time, her mistakes are going to stir hope inside her and not condemnation. This time, her guilt is going to be transformed into overflowing joy. Because she is not dealing in the currency of eye for an eye, but rather in the currency of miracles and CHILDLIKE happy endings and unmerited favor. And who has time for condemnation when there is a life that full waiting to be lived?
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You really are an amazing writer!!! I love reading all your blogs…really makes me think and gives me new ideas! Thanks Mandy, I hope you have a wonderful day.
Amen! Beautiful Mandy! I love what you said and how you said it. Go live it!
Oh, how lovely you are, Mandy and how lovely you said it. As I read I kept hearing the words to Ephesians 3 playing in my head. The Message does it best here…” My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask Him to strengthen you by His Spirit – not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength – that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite Him in. And I ask Him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you’ll be able to take in with all Christians the extravagant dimensions of Christ’s love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God.” Yes! Now go have a great day!
beautifully written, babe, wow, you nailed it….His grace is new every morning….a wonderful testimony that anyone reading it can share with others who are wallowing in their own disappointments and frustrations of grasping/living the life we have been given access to thru Him….now if I could just shrink this down to card-size? lol….font 4 perhaps? I’m saving it ….
I bought new book Extraordinary by John Bevere (author of Affabel allegory!)….I’m thinking it speaks to this same issue, BUT I am not sure, as I just received it, synopsis I heard sounded like it might!
from one broken fragile beauty to another … I can totally relate! found myself writing about the same sort of thing today!
Grace rules. Guilt drools.
Thanks for this post, Mandy. It really “spoke” to me.
rock it. that was the stuff
HIS GRACE is enough. HE is enough! Great thoughts here!