When
responses of grace are nurtured within,
Despite
lack of recognition of worth,
We’ve
found Divine basis to glory in,
And thanks has its birth.
***
Think of a relationship or
interaction where, despite your constant grace and extension of favour, you
receive no recognition, thanks, or reward. There is plenty of give on your part
and only take on theirs—or so it seems.
These situations are a test.
If we can continue to act
faithfully, without giving vent or even thought to resentment, then we can
expose ourselves to the blessing God has for us in the extension of our Divinely-sponsored
grace.
This blessing is the feeling of
peace having obeyed the Lord. It’s the peace that transcends understanding. And
this blessing is begotten us for our trust, that the Lord is doing something in
all of this.
Grace Is Only Easy When God Sponsors It
When ours is the perfect surrender
before God, and such surrender is easier than we often think, grace becomes
easy. No longer are we much a part of the equation. No longer are our wants and
needs really that important. No longer does what we want get in the way of the
work of God in the relationship.
Grace is only easy when God
sponsors it. When we genuinely obey God, forthrightly seeking what God wants us
to seek, which is harmony to every part of our personal and interpersonal
world, then grace is made easy. It’s easy because it’s no longer about us, but
about God.
Imagine being impervious to
resentment and bitterness. The Lord can gift us such grace to convert what we
imagine and bring it to reality. But this can only be achieved if we forego our
right to ourselves.
This is the Christian challenge:
to choose what God wants, not what we want. The moment we do it is the moment
the Spirit of God convicts us that this was the right thing to do.
What More Thanks Are Needed?
When we understand this principle,
the one about to be presented, we’ll never need another human being’s thanks.
Only when we forget this principle will we again need humanity’s thanks. This
is the principle:
Every time we’re not recognised or thanked or
rewarded as we should be, God recognises, thanks, and rewards us... in advance,
we’re thanked.
We know this by the way we feel
when we no longer insist on recognition, thanks, or reward. This is a mighty
lesson for the parent, for the boss, for the worker, for children, for
everyone.
Feeling thanked in advance is
about knowing God’s appreciation, and the fact that human appreciation will
come if we keep pressing valiantly forward in grace.
***
When responses of grace are
nurtured within, despite lack of recognition of worth, we’ve found Divine basis
to glory in, and thanks has its birth.
© 2012 S. J. Wickham.
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