grace flows

At the end of September, Emily announced she would be blogging 31 Days of Grace during the month of October, and I was ready. At the time I was not in a happy place - some serious circumstances had me reeling inside and struggling with "God with us". My spirit was thirsty for reassurance that His presence was truly in my midst, not merely a sideline spectator.

The past 29 days has brought the subject of grace to the forefront of my consciousness in a way it hadn't been, especially lately. Grace was like the beautiful colors of fabric on my shelf - always present, pleasant to the eyes, but on the sidelines for when I needed it.

As I pondered each post, God carefully unwrapped grace for me, revealing its intricacies and depth in everyday life. My everyday life. He showed me how grace flows in every area of life, not just the ones I was conscious of. He illuminated the places where I had rejected grace's touch and exposed places where I withheld it from others.

We cannot escape grace any more than we can escape God's presence. Whether we choose to believe it or not isn't the point and doesn't matter. Grace is always there, waiting for us to employ its power in our lives so it can spill over to those around us.