Grace Is A Really Big Deal...

I was a United Methodist pastor for 41 years.
Theologically, I am a life-long Wesleyan.
John Wesley is the person given credit for the founding of the Methodist movement...which eventually became the Methodist Church...and since 1968, the United Methodist Church.
And the top-of-the-heap biggie for Wesleyans is Grace.
More exactly, the divine Grace that precedes human decision.
Wesley understood Grace as God’s active presence in our lives.
A presence not dependent on human actions or human response.
It is a gift. A universal gift.
Grace is central to the Wesleyan understanding of Christian faith and life.
Grace can be defined as the love and mercy given by God because God wants us to have it, not because of anything we have done to earn it.

Grace. Grace. Grace.
What about this thing called Grace?

What about the feeling that we 
are not worthy of Grace?

What about the pain inflicted by others 
who tell us we are not worthy of Grace?

What about the darkness, 
the shame, the guilt
 and the down-deep very-secret fear 
that Grace is not for us?
 Other people, maybe...but most certainly not us.
What about our belief that we are broken…

broken-down, broken in pieces,
and broken beyond the reach of Grace?

What about the fact that we are sometimes shaken to our core,

that we are at risk of losing it all: 
heart, mind, and soul…

that we are not what we thought we were

and that our life is altogether fast-passing
 and false…

that our deep-seated doubts and mistrust 
and desperate rants

make the touch of Grace impossible for us?

What about the assurance others speak of 
but we do not sense…not one little bit?


What about this thing called Grace?


Thankfully, Grace is nothing less than 
The Very Presence of God…

And Grace is all there is…

And Grace is all that’s needed…

And Grace is with us always…

The Very Presence of the God who says 
I will never leave you alone.
 Ever…

I Am With You Always.
 Always.
(The above paragraph is not John Wesley, but it is not outside the scope of Wesleyan theology.)

Many of us have a difficult time understanding Grace, I think.  

We are so used to living in a world of rules and regulations, 
…
so used to competition…
…
so used to being told to be good…
to do right…

that Grace is often hard for us to understand. 

Many of us don’t believe Grace can shape our lives more effectively than law…and rules.


Karl Barth, the great theologian, wrote this from Basel Prison:
Believe me, there is a captivity much worse than the captivity in this house. There are walls much thicker and doors much heavier than these closed upon you. All of us, the people without and you within, are prisoners of our own obstinacy, of our many greeds, of our various anxieties, of our mistrust, and in the last analysis of our unbelief. We are all sufferers. Most of all we suffer from ourselves. We each make life difficult for ourselves and in so doing for our fellowmen. We suffer from life’s lack of meaning.
But now listen. Into the depth of our predicament the word is spoken from on high: By grace you have been saved! 
…

You? Yes, we! 
Not just any other people, more pious and better than we are, no we, each one of us.

When life is good…and when it is not…Grace is there!  

When things go our way…and when they do not…Grace is there!
When we are hemmed in by troubles…and when we are not…Grace is there!

When sin is involved…even our sin…Grace is there!

Ah yes, but:
Are we brave enough…to give ourselves to that kind of Grace?

If the Good Book says God is love, and that we are the apples of God’s eye…

Would we believe that…
would we give ourselves to that kind of Grace?
If the Good Book says that God is approachable…

Would we believe that…
would we give ourselves to that kind of Grace?
If the Good Book says that God has forgiven us completely…

Would we believe that…
would we give ourselves to that kind of Grace?
If the Good Book says that God will never leave us or forsake us…

Would we believe that…
would we give ourselves to that kind of Grace?
If the Good Book says God relates to us through love alone…

Would we believe that…
would we give ourselves to that kind of Grace?
If so, Grace stands waiting for us.


Waiting for us to say Yes 
to everything Grace offers…

Waiting for us to lose all we thought we had,
and all we thought we needed,
and then to gain the assurance 
that Grace is all there is.
..
the Divine Grace that precedes human decision.

Live Well...

Sitting in my recliner in the living room, I can look out to the kitchen and see the following message stenciled on the wall above the cabinets:

You have seen that three-part slogan, too. In many places.

And there are variations, some of which follow:
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much, Leave Memories.
Live Every Moment, Laugh Every Day, Love Beyond Words.
Live Well, Learn Plenty, Laugh Often, Love Much.
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much, Dream Big.

As best I can determine, the slogan/phrase/mantra comes from a poem by Elisabeth-Anne "Bessie" Anderson Stanley titled  either What is Success? or What Constitutes Success? (Although the poem Success, by Ralph Waldo Emerson, is sometimes cited as the originating source.) Stanley's poem follows:
 
He has achieved success who has lived well, laughed often, and loved much;
Who has enjoyed the trust of pure women, the respect of intelligent men
and the love of little children;
Who has filled his niche and accomplished his task;
Who has never lacked appreciation of Earth's beauty or failed to express it;
Who has left the world better than he found it,
Whether an improved poppy, a perfect poem, or a rescued soul;
Who has always looked for the best in others and given them the best he had;
Whose life was an inspiration;
Whose memory a benediction.


There are a million-and-one essays, articles, poems, songs, sermons, and Ted Talks about how to live well. For this posting, I have consulted material from two other sources on how to go about the business of Living Well. Living a Life that Matters.

Those two sources are Pope Francis and the Dalai Lama.  
Here, in part, and with some editing, is what the two gentlemen have to offer:

Live and let live.  Move forward and let others do the same.
Be giving of yourself to others...be open and generous toward others.
Proceed calmly in life.
Have a healthy sense of leisure. 
Respect and take care of nature.
Let go of negative things quickly.
Respect others’ beliefs.
Work for peace. The call for peace must be shouted. Peace sometimes gives the impression of being quiet, but it is never quiet, peace is always proactive and dynamic.

Be aware that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
When you lose, don’t lose the lesson. If you lose what you have learned not to do, you will be doomed to repeat it.
Take responsibility for all your actions.
Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck. Not everything that you desire will be necessarily good for you in the long run.
Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly. Rules are meant to be broken. Most of them are put in place by archaic, corrupt institutions that seek only to enslave and maintain their own power. If authority was never questioned, we could be a stagnant civilization.
When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it. And do not let your pride get in the way of taking those steps. Apologize, taking full responsibility. That will speak for your character.

Spend some time alone every day.
Be open to change, but don’t let go of your values.
Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer. Silence leads to relaxed contemplation during which emotions have less influence and logic can take over.
A loving atmosphere should be the foundation for your life.
In disagreements, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.
Share your knowledge. It’s a way to achieve immortality.

Be gentle with the earth. Hurting the earth is hurting yourself and the futures of your children and loved ones.

As often as possible, go someplace you’ve never been before. Experience new places and new things. The Earth is so vast with unique and beautiful places, why wouldn’t you want to go explore them?

Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other. The opposite is a sign that the relationship should end. If you need someone more than you love them, it is a sign of dependency, not affection. 

Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it. Success is not truly success if you had to compromise yourself or your loved ones in order to achieve it.
Live in the moment. Do not forget nor dwell on the past, but do forgive it. Be aware of the future but do no fear or worry about it. Focus on the present moment, and that moment alone. Living in any other moment will only bring you anguish. The past cannot be changed and the future cannot be controlled. The only time that is malleable is the present moment.
Seek the company of positive people. The people around you cannot control your feeling and actions, but they can influence them. So befriend and spend your time with optimistic, open-minded, overall positive people who will only contribute more positivity to your life.
Decide what you want before you proceed to do anything. What is it that you want? That answer requires a lot more thinking. More than just thinking actually, it requires deep contemplation in a quiet place on your own. 

Simple suggestions for Living Well.
Simple...but not simplistic.