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Grace starts with you

Romans 11:6

“But if it by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace” 

A lot of this weekend I’ve spent reflecting. I don’t know about you, but I tend to mentally rehearse past situations that I have been in. I ponder on the mistakes that I have made, or the conversations I wish went differently. Sometimes this isn’t healthy for me, and often times it can leave me in a state of fear and anxiety; however, it does propose an opportunity for me to do something: give Grace. This is a term that is always looked at from an external perspective: whether it’s receiving Grace from God or giving it to others. What about ourselves? How many times do we think of giving Grace internally? We can’t expect to provide something that we don’t already give to ourselves. 

Before understanding how we can give Grace to ourselves, we must first know what is and where the source of it comes from. The Bible has gone through many translations: the book we see today stems from Aramaic and Hebrew origin. So, when looking at specific terminologies, it’s important to look at these origins to get a more accurate viewpoint on meanings. The Hebrew origin of Grace translates to “khen” which gives words like “delight” or “favour”. Salvation is understood as the source of Grace: the fact that we have a relationship with God is through the “favour” of Jesus dying for our sins. 

When looking at the verse, we see Grace as something that isn’t associated “on the basis of works”. Grace is unmerited favour: it is a gift of compassion. A gift isn’t earned; it’s received. When we think of gifting ourselves, I’m not merely talking about having ice cream after a long day or even watch that show when you’re stressed: Grace extends beyond materialistic pleasures. 

Sometimes we may think that we have to earn an ability to give ourselves something. For me, I’ve grown up with the mindset that everything given has to be based on some form of work. When it came to friendships, I felt like I had to earn them to keep people around. When it came to receiving love, I felt like I had to provide something first. All of these things accustomed my mind to believe that work was always attached to reward. And so that’s why I’ve always struggled with giving myself Grace. 

In our lives there will be times where we make mistakes: we’re human. We all at some point fall short of the glory of God, and it’s very easy in those times to think negatively. Your mistakes are mistakes, and your past is your past, and I think giving ourselves Grace looks like: accepting the past, living in the present and protecting our future.

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