The Grace Awakening: Believing in Grace Is One Thing. Living It Is Another. by Charles R. Swindoll

Author:Charles R. Swindoll [Swindoll, Charles R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Religion, Christian Life, Grace (Theology), General
ISBN: 9781418515393
Google: IyXx5w0Ot94C
Publisher: Thomas Nelson Inc
Published: 2003-11-19T05:12:15+00:00

The Grace to Let Others Be

are able to enjoy a few luxuries we may not have, why don't we applaud their success and rejoice with them? Why do we pay back evil for evil, even though we know that retaliation will only create greater barriers? The list of why questions could continue for another page. The inescapable fact is that more often than not we nullify grace rather than magnify it. We resist it much more often than we release it. What is it within us that hinders an attitude of horizontal grace from flowing freely?

I have thought about that for many months. While thinking, I have not only examined my own life, I have also observed others, most of them Christians. My findings have not been pleasant, but they are revealing and I think reliable. Most of us fall short when it comes to letting others be because of two strong and very human tendencies: We compare ourselves with others (which leads us to criticize or compete with them) and we attempt to control others (which results in our manipulating or intimidating them). For a few moments, let's dissect and examine both of those tendencies that keep grace from awakening.

To Compare

Christians seem especially vulnerable when it comes to comparison. For some reason, which I cannot fully discern, we are uneasy with differences. We prefer sameness, predictability, common interests. If someone thinks differently or makes different choices than we do, prefers different entertainment, wears different clothing, has different tastes and opinions, or enjoys a different style of life, most Christians get nervous. We place far too much weight on externals and the importance of appearances, and not nearly enough on individuality and variety. We have "acceptable norms" in which we are able to move freely and allow others the freedom to do so. But heaven help the poor soul who steps beyond those bounds!

We compare musical tastes. We compare financial incomes. We compare marital status. We compare spirituality on the basis of externals. If an individual appreciates hymns and

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