"For a society that prides itself on tolerance, we are also a society that fundamentally lacks grace when we interact with each other. You only have to read blog comments, listen to talk radio, or watch what happens when a scandal breaks -- when some public figure makes a mistake or fails at his duties or says something inappropriate. If he's an ideological opponent, we quickly become rabid animals, gleefully watching his demise. If we are his supporters,we insist that he did nothing wrong, even as we know that he probably did.
"And in either case, there is no forgiveness; there is no redemption. No public apology is sufficient. No attempt to pay back is enough. No acknowledgment of guilt or repentance will ever be adequate. And we wonder why the people closest to us -- in our homes and churches and schools -- have a hard time acknowledging their own failures. Could it be that we've faithfully demonstrated to them that there will be no grace when they do?" - Hannah Anderson
The centrality of the Gospel is that we (people) are not good. We need a Savior. When we mess up (and we will), we need grace. When we practice extending grace to others, we are reminded of the grace that is daily (and hourly) extended to us by God.
As we go through our days, we should celebrate inconvenience and disappointments as opportunities to be gracious. This perspective will remind us of the Cross -- of the grace upon grace poured regularly into our lives, and the love of God towards perfectly loved, imperfect people.
Questions:
Have you noticed a paucity of grace in your daily interactions? How do you respond when things don't go as planned? How do others respond when you make a mistake? What would our world and our homes look like if we did not expect people to act perfectly all the time?
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