Read: John 1:9-18
From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. (v. 16)
I am much better at offering grace to another than I am at receiving it myself. Why? It may be that my personal bar of expectation is higher than I can attain. Or perhaps I need to work on accepting that even as a daughter of the King, I am going to make a mess of things from time to time by my own power and choosing.
The glorious, generous, and unfathomable grace of God has been available to humankind from the start. Though Adam and Eve were banned from the garden of Eden after eating the forbidden fruit (Genesis 3), God did not destroy his most prized creation. His grace has been woven into human existence every moment since. His protection, deliverance, and guidance in our lives are evidence of his everlasting love and purpose for us. And through it all, grace upon grace.
Jesus’s death on the cross was the most gracious act of all time. He died for us so we could know not only God’s grace, but eternal life with him (John 19:28-30). In gratitude and awe, may we feel compelled to make grace a permanent season in our lives—to accept it readily from God and extend it regularly to those around us, and even to ourselves. The apostle who needed it most put it best: “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” (Eph. 2:8).
As you pray, thank God for his amazing grace!
Joy Petroelje serves as the Advancement Operations Manager for CURE International, a global nonprofit organization. Aside from work, she enjoys spending time with her family, coffee with friends, reading, and traveling local trails on foot.
