Grace

Luke 6:36
Be merciful, just as your father is merciful.
 
A few years ago, I allowed my emotional volatility to guide me into a heated disagreement with my wife. I said things that hurt her and went to sleep without apologizing. The next morning, she and our oldest daughter were leaving early for a cheer competition. Our younger daughter and I were sleeping when they left and planning to meet them there later. As my wife was leaving, she noticed I’d accidentally parked my truck in a way that prohibited her from getting her car out of the driveway. As you may have experienced, rearranging cars in the morning while in a rush isn’t pleasant. But Rachel not only moved my car, she pulled it back into the warm garage and put the sunglasses I’d left in her car back into it. As you can envision, this process likely took her just under two minutes, but when rushing in the morning, that’s basically an hour. This left a lasting impression on me. In return for my hostility, she responded with grace. I deserved to be riding in a cold car with the sun in my eyes. However, I was riding in a warm car and my shades on. In summary, it’s hard to stay angry at someone who repays opposition with grace.
 
In relationships, grace is like the oil that lubes the moving parts of a car. When grace is abundant, parts run smooth. When grace is scarce, there is friction. Should we have boundaries and expectations in relationships? Absolutely. But that’s not the focus of this writing. The point of this writing is to remind us that our default response as believers should be grace, not retaliation. I’ve found that my ability to extend grace to others is directly proportionate to my ability to receive grace from God. I can’t extend what I won’t receive. We often don’t need another class or another book on how to show grace. We simply need to soak deeper in the grace that’s been poured out to us from our Father. This grace is received only through faith in the finished work of Jesus. Only when it is received, can it be extended to others. After all, only those without sin are qualified to throw stones.
 
John 8:7
When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”