Before I get started, I want you to stop what you're doing and pray with me for a second. This is a new blog, and this is my first post. Pray with a sincere heart that it deeply touches people in a way that will bring them self-discovery, freedom, peace, and joy through the Lord and his Word. Pray that through this ministry, we will crave a deeper connection and commitment with the Lord. Pray that this happens for me because that is the first reason this blog was created. The second was for each and every woman out there searching for some peace of mind in this whirlwind of life. If two people read this blog, that's two people who now know they have a friend in the fire.
I need daily recognition of God's grace. Sometimes I need to remember that the God on the mountain is still the same God in the valley.
I have been a mom now for almost four years, and let me tell you, you don't know grace until you become a mom. Sometimes, all I run on is grace, and through Jesus's blood, I have the honor and privilege of doing just that. Through him I don't have to have it all together all the time. Through him I don't have to have all the answers. Through him I can let go and let him take control. Through God's grace, we get a glimpse of the bigger picture and that the mundane things we expect and take for granted are limits that we put on God. God is bigger than any expectation we can put on ourselves today, tomorrow, and twenty years from now. God is bigger than the tears you cry and the bar you set for yourself and your family. God is bigger than this preconceived idea or dream you had for your life. God is bigger than the fear and awe that you have over his plans for you and your family.
When Paul was struggling with his thorn in the flesh as it is written in 2 Corinthians 12: 9-10, Jesus said, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness." Now, think about Paul's response here. He had asked God to be delivered three different times. He could've said, "Wait a minute. That's it? I've waited for an answer, and you're not even going to take this away from me? You actually WANT me to endure this? Why? What for? Is this going to give me a huge reward in the end because if not, I don't want any part of this." I don't know about you, but sometimes I fall prey to the idea that with good deeds, God will magically erase any hardships in my life and that when I mess up, I'll get punished and God will somehow love me less. It's so easy to become a victim of this mentality. How many of us have set up this idea of treatment and judgement from God? But humble Paul responds accordingly: "...therefore will I glory in my infirmities...for when I am weak, then am I strong." His honest, pure grace is all we need. When we are weak...when we're at the brink of crumbling and wanting to give up...that's when God is his strongest.
God knew that Mallory Hood would need these verses. He knew from the very beginning, even before we were all born, that we would need this story illustrated and brought to life by Paul. I praise God today for this simple bit of scripture, and I'm thankful for Paul in the example that he set for us all. There is more freedom found in these verses than all the peace treaties that have ever been written combined.
When Paul was struggling with his thorn in the flesh as it is written in 2 Corinthians 12: 9-10, Jesus said, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness." Now, think about Paul's response here. He had asked God to be delivered three different times. He could've said, "Wait a minute. That's it? I've waited for an answer, and you're not even going to take this away from me? You actually WANT me to endure this? Why? What for? Is this going to give me a huge reward in the end because if not, I don't want any part of this." I don't know about you, but sometimes I fall prey to the idea that with good deeds, God will magically erase any hardships in my life and that when I mess up, I'll get punished and God will somehow love me less. It's so easy to become a victim of this mentality. How many of us have set up this idea of treatment and judgement from God? But humble Paul responds accordingly: "...therefore will I glory in my infirmities...for when I am weak, then am I strong." His honest, pure grace is all we need. When we are weak...when we're at the brink of crumbling and wanting to give up...that's when God is his strongest.
God knew that Mallory Hood would need these verses. He knew from the very beginning, even before we were all born, that we would need this story illustrated and brought to life by Paul. I praise God today for this simple bit of scripture, and I'm thankful for Paul in the example that he set for us all. There is more freedom found in these verses than all the peace treaties that have ever been written combined.
My prayer for us today is that we will have the confidence and strength to accept God's gift of peace and redemption...his grace. I pray that the capacity of our brains will widen in order to accept that salvation is more than just heaven...it's a renewed state of mind whenever we choose to see that it's there, free, waiting for us to grasp. Even when things we can't control are coming at us faster than we can register, God is still there with his hand outstretched. Instead of wanting to let go and give up, we've got to let go and take God's hand so that He can reveal his glories to us in his own way and in his own time.
-Mallory
"In raising children I have lost my mind but found my soul." - Lisa T. Shepherd
This is so good, Mallory! Ephesians 2 reminds us that grace is a gift just like you said. He not only gifts us with the grace of salvation, but His grace sustains us and enables us to live a life unto Him. Our Sunday school lesson was on grace this week. As mothers we get into this case of the "perfect mom syndrome," when we need to just run straight to Christ who enables us to be who He has called us to be. Love this post and you!
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