Receive 2 Believe

You must understand that grace is given by the Father and receive it so you can give grace in this world.

Have you heard "receive to believe"  before? Yeah, that is a great statement and catchy too.  But in my my heart I knew the definition but I didn't know the heart of grace until my 40s .  I gave grace to others and see the world in rose colored glasses...but that's another blog.

I personally didn't realize that God's grace was being given to me.  I was a punctual patty, brown noser that did her work and picked up others.  Instead of picking up more I needed to take a break.  God saw this and saw me as his beautiful beloved daughter. When I looked in the mirror I saw someone that was ; overworked, under appreciated, and hurt in ways that I didn't have words for.  To be honest I believed but had no idea how to receive. 

It took a cancer diagnosis a round of radiation and chemo and a beautiful cancer counselor to let me receive "grace".  Even then my mind thought "well, sure, I'm sick so yeah people can give me grace".  Wrong! That is not receiving grace that is making an excuse. 

In 2018 I have been challenged to "ponder" words.  The nerd in me loves that! God has been reforming my mind with words, their worldly definitions, and spirit led ones.  I was late in 2018 for; work deadlines, for friends events, dinner, and grace.

You see I had to come to grips with the reckless love of God.  That he gives more grace than I could imagine.  That he knows all my dirt and gives me grace.  He knows my thoughts and gives me grace.  He knows my pain and gives me grace....and, the list goes on. 

And, incredibly in 2018 I fully recognized what it means for "grace given grace received".  It means because He gives me grace I can receive and give grace to another.  It is a circle that repeats and there is no end.  Did you catch that....there is NO END. 

I think it is the cleverness of God to give "grace".  He wants to draw us near, to be in wonder over his infinite precision. He wants this girl to nerd out on words and broaden her mind.  He wants to blow up what I think to be true with grace.

Peace be with you- Sherry

UPDATES

* Dale, the sonshine, was invited the National Society of Leadership and Success aka Sigma Alpha Pi at Northwest Missouri State.  I'm gonna bragger mom out and tell you that he got an A is college calculus and was on the honor role.

*Emily, the darling dot, got her application and transcripts sent to Northwest and is waiting to hear back.  Pray that there is grace at Northwest for Emily and she is accepted.

*I've got a grant writer that wants to meet and work with me to help me write grants to teach art in KC and in Wagner. In 2018 I knew that what I do as a light bearer of the Father was bigger than our own budget or help from friends.  God was telling me things about places I would go in a few eyars and I thought, "yeah, nice thought" but I can't afford it.  By the fall I realized that those places were God driven purpose.  I realized in December that it can no longer just be the Ted & Sherry Show with friends helping when I sat in Wagner, South Dakota the first night after my tire blew out. If I had a grant imagine what I could do to be light, grace, and creativity to the world.

*I've been reading from Mark this year.  The words "teacher" grab at me in a way I don't remember as as kid.  Jesus was our savior but he was a "teacher".  Isn't God so good that he would grace me to be a teacher.  In Mark 1:38 it says "go somewhere else, to small towns nearby, you have to spread the Good News in them".  It's just one of the "ahhhh-ha" moments in my life to be; light, love, and creativity.  I've wrote a proposal for both places in Overland Park and Harrisonville.  Pray that they are received with grace and I can go there to teach art in 2019.