yeah, yeah, yeah

for by grace you have been saved through faith,
and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God
not as a result of works, so that no one can boast
ephesians 2:8-9


for way too long I left grace in these verses alone.
I kept grace as a 'salvation only' thing. 
Like, yeah, yeah, yeah.....grace is that awesome 'saving thing' God used to secure my eternity with Him
grab me out of the pit of hell, out of my sinful state, and isn't that just the greatest thing ever?!


I'm so glad over the years
(and especially over these last months)
it's become so much more than that to me.

the richness of God's grace
the fullness of its power in my life
the freedom to extend it to others

my perfectionistic self scoffs at the idea of grace.
for myself, mostly.....but sadly at times I saw it scoff at others
(oh, how I hate to admit that!)

my perfectionistic self had me in bondage to
myself.
my expectations.
'the product' that I put out:
(a clean house, 3 square meals a day, contented, Jesus-loving children...)
L to the O to the L.

4 children in 7 years was the best thing that ever happened to me.
I say that often to people who ask me,
"how in the world do you do it?!"

you see

4 children knocked my own perfectionistic strength
right out of me (as if I had my 'own strength' to begin with....)
4 children took my perfectionist self off the high pedestal free of dust
and allowed grace to come flowing in
4 children took my perfectionistic tendancies
and smeared jelly-filled fingers all over them
4 children allowed me to see that a sink full of dishes
meant that I was busy reading Curious George books
(instead of seeing failure)

4 children allowed me to see that grace was needed in all parts of my life
so I could extend it to my kiddos on a daily basis
and thankfully, just like the love I have for them,
that same grace didn't need to be divided......
it multiplied with the need
and there was plenty of grace at the end of the day
to extend some to myself as well.

grace for my 'screw up' times:
man, I lost it with my children yesterday
when my head was pounding with another headache
grace for the times I go to my children
and ask for forgiveness
giving them a chance to extend grace as well
grace for the moment when I think I have it all together
and everything comes crashing down around me
grace to appreciate those moments for what they are--
another reminder that I am not in control
and I serve an amazingly wonderful
and extremely gracious God
who is.

have a super day living
in the life-giving grace that is ours to claim daily.