Is Grace Here?
Excerpt from Ephesians 2: 4-10
"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God."
Reflection by Anthony B. Robinson
I was a guest preacher in a downtown, tall-steeple church. Fifty years ago, that church had Sunday school rooms bursting at the seams, with kids all over the place. But these days there weren't many children at all, just a handful on a good Sunday.
This particular Sunday, one of the few children, a seven-year-old whose name was Grace, had been dancing in the sanctuary’s side aisle during the opening hymn. It was a lovely accompaniment to our praise of God. Grace appeared to be utterly unself-conscious, "lost in wonder, love and praise" (to quote Wesley), as she twirled and turned to the music.
The time came, in the service, for the children's sermon. The pastor got up and peered around the room trying to see if there were any children there that day for a children's sermon.
After a few seconds of standing and looking the pastor said, "Is Grace here?" She meant, of course, was seven-year-old Grace still present? But I heard something different. I heard, "Is God’s grace here? Is there grace for us in this diminished time, in these difficult days?"
The dancing seven-year-old was our answer. God's grace is present, even and perhaps especially, in hard and discouraging times, in unexpected places and among unlikely people. Moreover, God's grace and power are not dependent on our numbers or our age. God's grace moves among us, calling us to a fresh confidence in the mysterious power of the God who is doing a new thing.
Prayer
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. To God be the glory. Amen.
Excerpt from Ephesians 2: 4-10
"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God."
Reflection by Anthony B. Robinson
I was a guest preacher in a downtown, tall-steeple church. Fifty years ago, that church had Sunday school rooms bursting at the seams, with kids all over the place. But these days there weren't many children at all, just a handful on a good Sunday.
This particular Sunday, one of the few children, a seven-year-old whose name was Grace, had been dancing in the sanctuary’s side aisle during the opening hymn. It was a lovely accompaniment to our praise of God. Grace appeared to be utterly unself-conscious, "lost in wonder, love and praise" (to quote Wesley), as she twirled and turned to the music.
The time came, in the service, for the children's sermon. The pastor got up and peered around the room trying to see if there were any children there that day for a children's sermon.
After a few seconds of standing and looking the pastor said, "Is Grace here?" She meant, of course, was seven-year-old Grace still present? But I heard something different. I heard, "Is God’s grace here? Is there grace for us in this diminished time, in these difficult days?"
The dancing seven-year-old was our answer. God's grace is present, even and perhaps especially, in hard and discouraging times, in unexpected places and among unlikely people. Moreover, God's grace and power are not dependent on our numbers or our age. God's grace moves among us, calling us to a fresh confidence in the mysterious power of the God who is doing a new thing.
Prayer
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. To God be the glory. Amen.
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