To choose grace in situations where I feel wronged and ignored is hard for me. I suspect it is difficult for you as well. However, God’s desire is that we honor Him by choosing to treat others with the same grace He showed when He forgave our sins before we even committed them–before we were born. Only in acting with grace toward others will I give God the honor He deserves.

 

2MefromHim Devotionals

Choose Grace

We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. Romans 5:1b-2

Grace was the last thing I felt. I was angry. My pride was hurt. Passionate words roiled through my mind, my mood as black as the look staring back from the mirror. The last thing I felt was forgiving grace.

Was that glint of wrath in my eyes what God saw in my heart?

As angry as I felt if my outraged look startled me then God, as well as others could see it too. And it was not becoming. There was no grace in my heart.

Did I have a right to feel irate that my opinion was ignored? By human standards, yes. However, God calls upon us to surrender our rights to Him. There is such a thing as righteous anger, but my expression of it must always include forgiveness because Jesus Christ, in His grace, forgave all my sin on the Cross.

Yes, I believed things should have been handled differently. But did my anger change what was past? Did it make my point or make me appear petty and judgmental? Did it cause anyone to listen to my reasoning, or did it tread on others feelings and close their ears?

I had written a devotional the previous week on seeking peace. In it, I quoted Romans 12:18: “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” I lacked the ability to purge the anger from my heart and make my point without disrespecting others. The only way to rid myself of the conviction of the Holy Spirit was to apologize for my attitude and harsh words. Acting with grace toward those who have wronged us is a choice. It goes against our natural inclinations. God’s strength is the only way to act with grace.

 

Apologizing didn’t change my feelings. It didn’t change the circumstances. But it freed my mind from the knowledge that my methods were not pleasing to God.

Did it open a path to reconciliation? I hope so. Did it solve our differences? Not really. But most important, I felt at peace with God because I chose grace. The situation did not change, but my harsh attitude began to dissipate.

In concern seek to trust God. In words seek to please God. In all things seek to honor God.

Choose grace and trust God to reveal a solution in His time.

© Copyright by Norma Gail Thurston Holtman, January 6, 2017

About the author:

Norma Gail is the author of the contemporary Christian romance, Land of My Dreams, winner of the 2016 Bookvana Religious Fiction Award. A women’s Bible study leader for over 21 years, her devotionals and poetry have appeared at ChristianDevotions.us, the Stitches Thru Time blog, and in “The Secret Place.” She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Romance Writers of America. Norma is a former RN who lives in the mountains of New Mexico with her husband of 40 years. They have two adult children.

Connect with Norma:

Website: www.normagail.org

Amazon Author page: http://www.amazon.com/Norma-Gail/e/B00ILHXBAK/

Book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQbZIoC_JSE

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorNormaGail

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+NormaGailwrites

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Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7874459

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Norma_Gail

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/norma-gail-thurston-holtman/42/71a/3b2

Book Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Land-My-Dreams-Norma-Gail/dp/1941103170

Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas Bookstore: http:// lpcbooks.com/product/land-of-my-dreams/