Grace through Faith

14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
15 John testified about Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.'"
16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.
17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.
John 14-17 (NASB)

I was so blessed by attending my first "Community Group" Bible Study last night.

My first thought was "Man, I'm too old. The people that will be there, are old enough to be my children. I won't have anything to offer. How will I be able to relate to this young group?"

God reminded me that I need fellowship and that He would be there and He would be the focus of discussion.

When our group leader opened up with the topic of FAITH, I sat back and listened to the people in the group share what faith meant to them. I was blessed to hear from their personal experiences how faith plays such an integral role in their lives.

After listening to everyone, I chimed in and shared my testimony and how it had a direct application to my faith in God. I don't remember everything that I said, but I was blessed so much by the responses from people in the group.

I do remember sharing about how we are saved by Grace through Faith. That in the midst of searching out the LORD for an answer, sometimes when the LORD doesn't answer, that is His answer.

We all have "Spiritual Short-Term Memory Loss" with regard to our faith in God and our relationship with Him. When life is going smoothly, we are full of joy. But as soon as we experience something that doesn't go "our way", then we immediately push every "panic button" available to us. We forget to go to the LORD, like Job did and fall down to the ground and worship Him.

That is my heart's desire - Have a heart like Job and David. Job and David knew where their strength came from. When David had committed adultery and murder, he knew that he must confess and repent to God. When he was being pursued by his enemies, he knew where to go. He went to the LORD.

When Job found out that he had lost his children, cattle, fields in a matter of a few hours, he had some choices to make. Job had to choose from the following:

1. Curse God for taking away everything from him
2. Pursue his enemies and mete out vengeance against them
3. Worship the LORD

At the end of Job Chapter 1, we find out what Job did -

20 Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshiped.
21 He said, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked I shall return there The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD."
22 Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.

That's what I want to have and to remember. That I MUST go to the LORD and bless HIS HOLY NAME.

In order for David to have gone to the LORD, he had to have faith. David knew about Grace when he had committed adultery with Bathsheba. All of David's life, he was always seeking out the LORD. This is why the LORD called him "a man after God's own heart."

I give thanks to the LORD for He is good.
His lovingkindness endures forever.

May you always bless the LORD at all times.