Grace: Resist the Funk

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. — Colossians 4:6

Thought for the Day: The reason I can give grace is because I so desperately need it.

I like this verse. I really do. As a matter of fact, I’ve challenged my Proverbs 31 Ministries team that this is our focus — our honor code, if you will. It outlines how I want to honor God, honor others, and honor the opportunities entrusted to me each day. I told my team that an easy way to remember this verse is with three Gs:

Graceful: full of grace
Godly: seasoned with God’s truth
Ready to Go: fully prepared to answer everyone

When I simplify this verse into three Gs, I can remember it. It interrupts me. It redirects me. But most of all, it challenges me. And the part that challenges me most is the “full of grace” part. My conversations should be full of grace. In other words, the bulk of my words should convey grace toward the person with whom I’m conversing. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried this, but it’s hard. Especially if that other person has yuck draped all over his or her attitude.

You know what I’m saying?

I love my kids and I wish motherhood were a string of beautiful, blissful days, but reality is sometimes very different. I had one of those altered-reality days recently when I knew things were going to be challenging with one of my daughters. I could tell she was going to push when I wanted to pull. She was going to go when I wanted to pause. She was going to take when I wasn’t in the mood to give.

I just knew there was going to be a situation.

So, thinking on this verse, I said to myself, Full of grace, Lysa. Absolutely full. Not partial. Not halfway. But all the way grace.

When that inevitable situation arose, I measured out lavish grace with each response. Not that I didn’t correct her — I did. But I did so in calm tones. I looked for ways to lovingly reassure her. I held her hand. And I kept quiet when my nerves were begging me to do otherwise.

I did really well… for a couple of hours.

And then I lost it. Completely.

I was so discouraged.

But as I think back now, there was grace in that part of the experience too. I demonstrated that the reason I can give grace is because I so desperately need it. I asked my daughter’s forgiveness, and I decided to resist my own funk that was begging me to sit and wallow in my messy humanity.

I dusted myself off and whispered, “God, help me. Please, please help me.” And I took one more step toward the grace I so desperately want to demonstrate. I don’t know who puts grace to the test in your life, but how might things be different if, just for today, you decided to resist the funk and give grace a try with that person one more time?

Remember, grace doesn’t have to be perfect to be good.

Dear Lord, thank You for Your amazing grace. I hope I show it in every conversation I have today. But when I blow it, thanks for giving me an extra measure of grace. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Excerpted with permission from Unglued Devotional by Lysa Terkeurst, copyright Zondervan.

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Your Turn

We all have Grace Test people in our lives. (And it’s important to remember that we’re all Grace Test people to someone else, too. How are you going to use the 3 G’s: Graceful, Godly, and Ready to Go? Leave your comments and thoughts on our blog. We would love to hear from you!