I use the word ‘Grace’ freely. It’s such a pretty, all encompassing, ethereal word. For example:
“I need God’s Grace to forgive my enemies and turn the other cheek.”
“Lord, give me the Grace to fight my weaknesses.”
I was reading and listening to Dallas Willard and jotted down his definitions for these words:
Grace - God doing in my life what I cannot do for myself.
Discipline- training or practice that enables me to do what is in my power.
Yikes! I might need to reevaluate my ideas on Grace. Forgiveness, selflessness, and getting rid of weaknesses might be in my power if I train and practice adequately.
I couldn’t run a marathon right now. Do I need Grace or Discipline to make it happen? If I train and practice, it is probably within my power. The truth is, I don’t want to put forth all that much effort and go through the pain of running a 26 mile race.
Similarly, there are many daily situations which require discipline. Yet, I’m a bit lazy to put forth the effort, so I ask God to do the work for me. I attempt to substitute Grace for my lack of discipline.
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