Perhaps you have never heard the term, “The Grace of God.” It is the unmerited, undeserved love and
favor of God toward mankind.
With this term in mind, how many times does the average person
contemplate doing something about their relationship or status with God the
Father on a daily basis? I can only
speak from personal experiences regarding my position in Christ, or lack
thereof, prior to meeting Him.
God’s grace is free to any person desiring true and lasting
satisfaction rather than experiencing the defeat that momentary pleasure of sinning offers. The problems associated with
sin are the consequences that follow after partaking of these brief or
prolonged encounters.
Such problems can be, but are not limited to, sexually transmitted diseases; cirrhosis of
the liver, which can be associated with alcoholism; lung cancer that is linked
to tobacco usage; loss of friends, family or job opportunities; emotions of
depression, loneliness, or hopelessness; and just the sense of “something’s
missing” in one’s life.
Before I gave my heart to the Lord in 1969, my life was filled with
heartache, unrest, and confusion. Though
I had a new car, money in the bank, and several friends; something was missing. It was a void that nothing I tried would fill.
My disparaging lifestyle didn’t happen overnight, but it was a steady
decline of moral and principled living.
Important values that were taught to me as a child became secondary to
my way of life.
I found myself falling deeper and deeper into the hole of worldly
pleasures, because of the physical highs that sinning provided. I didn’t give God a thought until something
out of the ordinary happened from time to time, which caused me to take inventory
of my life and consider where I had gone wrong.
At these times when I pillowed my head at night I feared what tomorrow
would bring. I knew that if I died in my
sleep I would spend eternity in hell.
It was hard to grasp at times how far I had stepped away from the
things of God in such a short amount of time.
It was a slow, steady process of decline. When I reflected on past happenings I
couldn’t believe the things that I was involved with. A few years prior I would have never
considered doing them.
When a person allows Satan to manipulate their coming and going, all
the devil gives in return is a feeling of hopelessness. Sinning does this. Peace of mind is nowhere to be found. Nothing I tried could satisfy the emptiness
and deep longing inside my being.
I remember when I was seemingly at the end of my rope of adventurous conduct, I
had thoughts of the following: “Is this
all there is to life?” Perhaps you’ve
had similar thoughts. They are quite
sobering to say the least; but hope and satisfaction can be found when a person
kneels before God and repents of their sin.
When I was thinking all hope was gone, it was at this juncture in time
that the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart.
He brought back to my remembrance a Bible verse that I had learned as a
child in Sunday school. It opened my
mind to truth.
(Matthew 6:33), “But seek first
the kingdom of God
God showed me that He was at the bottom of my list of desires and
wants. He reminded me that in order to
find what I was looking for I had to put Him first in my life. I was at a crossroads…God to the right or
continue down the wide road to destruction.
The choice was mine to make.
About that time Satan exclaimed that I was undeserving of God’s grace;
unworthy to receive His Son Jesus as Lord, because of the things I had done. God assured me that He had given His Son to die on the cross for my
sins. Jesus paid the price for my
redemption.
God’s grace was sufficient to save me from my state-of-affairs and
replace my old nature of sinning with a new nature that promoted peace and
happiness. I became born again! I felt the indwelling of God’s Spirit! At that moment all my cares and the heavy
load of sin were lifted off of my shoulders!
I was set free in an instant!
(2 Corinthians 5:17), “Therefore,
if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away;
behold, all things have become new.”
(1 Peter 5:7), “casting all your
care upon Him, for He cares for you.”
I’m just a sinner saved by grace, because of God’s mercy and
unconditional love. Yes, I was
undeserving, but I found favor with God, which is the definition of grace. If you or I were the only people that had
ever sinned, Jesus would still have given His life for us. He loves you and me that much!
Give Jesus a try and see if I’m not telling you the truth. Ask God to forgive you of your sins and to
come into your heart. I promise if you
do this, God will give you unexplainable peace and joy. Your newfound friend—Jesus—is the hope that
goes beyond this life, because you will now spend eternity with Him in heaven.
Written by,
Papa Boyd
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