That used to be a tight fit

You must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 3:18)

"I do not at all understand the mystery of grace - only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us." (Anne Lamott) Do you understand grace? I know more about grace each and every day I live - simply because there isn't a moment that goes by where I don't need more of it! Grace isn't always 'understood' as much as it is 'appreciated'. We are wrapped in the healing power of grace, not so we can sin again, but so we can see our sin as forgiven and learn to live without sinning again.

All of this walk with Jesus is one of coming to 'appreciate' the extreme value of the work of grace in our lives. We discover new things about how grace does a work within us every day. We might not 'feel' grace at work but trust me on this one - if you are a child of God, grace isn't finished with you yet! Have you ever worn a garment that felt just a bit too tight, making it hard for you to really be comfortable in it? Then one day, you realize that the garment you had put to the back of your closet because of the discomfort now fits without that binding or uncomfortable feel any longer.

Grace is kind of like that - one day, the sin that so easily tripped us up and got us all in a muddle doesn't hold us captive any longer. What caused us so much discomfort at one time no longer has that same 'binding' power. As long as we attempted to deal with that sin in our own power, we were bound up in it - uncomfortable, ill at ease, and under the pressure of guilt. When grace did its work within us, what once caused us such unnecessary 'pressure' is gone! We know a new level of comfort because we are walking free of the 'extra weight' sin created in our lives. It may not be easy to see grace 'growing' within us, but we can definitely 'feel' the effect of it in the long run. Just sayin!