My journey, like
almost everybody's journey, has been somewhat circuitous, turning this way and
that, with ups and downs and a few places when a wheel went off the road a
little. There have been and continue to
be mistakes - wrong turns, potholes, occasional fender-benders. I'm going to stop with the traffic metaphors,
I promise. Through all of my miscues,
mistakes, and mess-ups, I'm still here with a beautiful, loving wife, two
awesome kids, and a vocation that I love deeply. Some of that is the result of hard work, some
good choices, and a lot of help from other people. But mostly, I'm where I am - I'm who I am -
because of God's abundant, awe-inspiring grace.
If you spend any
time studying about Methodism and if the material you're studying is any good,
it won't take long at all to realize that God's grace is the beating, loving
heart of United Methodist theology. We
are a people soaked in, supported by, and suffused with God's grace. I love this about my church!
Reason Number 3 - I'm a United Methodist because God's
grace is so central to the theology and practice of who we are as United
Methodists.
I should probably
give an illustration here or tell some pertinent story about grace, but the
examples are too many, the instances too abundant. Every time I step into the pulpit or counsel
a hurting person or baptize a child or bless the communion elements or preside
over a funeral I do so only by the power of God's grace. That God is willing to use me in those ways
amazes and astounds me. After all, I
know me. I know the things I've done (or
not done), the things I've said (or not said), and God help me, all the things
I've thought. And God knows all of that
stuff and then some. Stuff I don't
remember or didn't even realize. And yet
God still calls me to preach and teach and serve. I tell ya, that's grace. My favorite line in any praise and worship
song is in Chris Tomlin's song Indescribable: "You've seen the depths of
my heart and you love me the same."
I love the Methodist
"way of salvation", which is one way to describe how we understand
God's grace. We typically talk about
grace in 3 (or maybe 4) forms: prevenient, justifying, and sanctifying. If you're feeling like 3 doesn't cut it, you
can add convicting in there also, between prevenient and justifying. I love that these forms of grace work in
unison to cover the whole of our lives.
A Wesleyan understanding of grace sees God's loving, gracious activity
in our lives not only in isolated, individual moments - it's more like grace is
woven through the tapestry of our lives, woven throughout from the
beginning.
God's prevenient
grace goes before us. I think back over
the course of my life and I see God's fingerprints all over the place. Even in moments of struggle, pain, or loss,
God was at work all along the way, leading me by His grace. I trust that you can say the same thing about
your life as well. God's grace still
goes before me, God's fingerprints are still all over the place, even when I
don't recognize them.
There are times when
we become aware of that grace, of God's loving presence and we accept for
ourselves the gift of that grace. There
was a moment in my life (Sunday, November 28th, 1992 to be precise) when God's
grace and love became real to me in a way that it had not before. In this moment, I experienced God's
justifying grace and it really did feel like my heart was "strangely
warmed". I didn't run to the altar,
I didn't shout or cry, I didn't actually say anything - but everything
changed. God began a work of
transformation in me that is still ongoing.
I felt that my sins were forgiven, that God loved me, and I became
conscious of that Story that I was written into at my baptism. I experienced and understood the love and mercy
of Jesus in a profoundly new way and I'm still feeling the ripple effects of
that moment of justifying grace.
That moment began a
process/journey of what we Methodists call sanctification, which is God's grace
at work in us, perfecting us in love.
When we are justified by God's grace, that's not the culmination or end
of the story - it's only the beginning!
I love that about being a United Methodist! God is still working on me, still shaping me
through the Holy Spirit. What I love
about the United Methodist understanding of grace is its vibrancy - all three
'forms' of grace are always present. It
is not ultimately a fixed system or progression, as if the Holy Spirit is bound
to some predictable script. God's grace
is alive and dynamic, always present and available.
In invite your
feedback - why do you belong to your church?
What do you love about your church?
And, I kindly ask for no negative comments about the United Methodist
Church or any other denomination. Make
sure your words give grace to those who read...
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