Grace for the Race

When was the last time you felt like you were running on empty? When you felt like your physical, emotional, or spiritual resources were running out? Well, the next time you get to that place of imagined emptiness, I hope you’ll remember this word of encouragement!

[Elijah] went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, “Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?” As she was going to get it, he called, “And bring me, please, a piece of bread.”

“As surely as the Lord your God lives,” she replied, “I don’t have any bread — only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it — and die.”

Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord gives rain on the land.'”

She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah. (1 Kings 17:10-16)

The widow of Zarephath expressed great faith in Elijah’s God. In the midst of a three-year drought and resulting famine, with only enough flour and oil for one final meal for her and her son, she first made the meal for Elijah. Elijah presented this widow with a test of faith and she passed with flying colors!

I wonder if the same could be said about you and me.

In this remarkable passage, we see the promise of an endless supply of God’s endless love. Every day the woman went to the jar of flour and the jug of oil and found enough in both to meet the needs of herself, her son, and the prophet Elijah. Let me ask you a question right now. What “jar of flour” or “jug of oil” do you fear will run out on you? The Bible teaches us to look past our daily need and to fix our eyes on the only One who has promised to meet it daily.

My God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)

To be sure, each day brings with it the trials, troubles, temptations, and tribulations we have been promised. But along with these difficulties comes our divine portion promised from on high. The widow was sustained for three years in a land that saw no rain. God has promised to meet you in your place of need, moment by moment. The key is to look past the challenges of the circumstances we face and see our God who is ruling over all of it.

Will we trust our God even when we cannot trace Him, as the widow did?

Before travelling to Zarephath, God used ravens to bring Elijah his daily bread. And our God will do the same for you today through countless “raven resources” that He will send your way. Remember, the resources of your Redeemer will never run out. As it is promised, “He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness (2 Corinthians 9:10).

And if you find yourself one day feeling like you have reached rock bottom, let me remind that this is a very good place to be, for you will then be standing on THE Rock—your Redeemer, who has promised to meet all of your needs and said that He will never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5).

Now those are promises you can take to the bank—the believer’s bank—and know that there are resources enough to sustain you.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!    

Are you in full-time Christian ministry? The answer, of course, is YES if you are a Christian. Every child of God is in full-time Christian ministry, regardless of who signs the paycheck at the end of the week.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. (Colossians 3:23-24)

Paul makes it clear that every kind of legitimate work—any work that does not violate the revealed truth of God—is a service to the Lord when it is done for His glory and with all of our heart. There is no such thing as a sacred/secular split in the life of the Christian. All of life is sacred and is to be lived out coram Deo—before the face of God.

This was true from the very beginning. Adam and Eve were made by God, made in the image of God, and made to live for the glory of God. Every aspect of their lives was sacred and consecrated to God. This is God’s plan for humanity. What you spend the bulk of your 168 hours doing each week on is not to be divorced from God. Your work is to be performed “as working for the Lord, not for men,” which was God’s plan . . . before and after sin entered into the world.

I often speak to people who describe their jobs as mundane and insignificant. They only say these things because they do not see their work in light of the biblical mandate to use it as a means to bring honor and glory to God. Everyone cannot serve God in the church. But everyone can and must serve God right where they are, in whatever they do. Every job is sacred and meaningful when it is performed for the Savior. The only “insignificant” job in the world is the one where Jesus cannot be found.

So . . . where are you currently serving your Lord today? What is the witness of your work? Remember, when you arrive at the office or wherever you work, you are responsible to bring the sacred and spiritual into the secular by serving God, not men. It comes down to perspective. When you see whatever it is you do as an act of service to God, then you rise above the thought of mere work, to pouring yourself out as an act of worship to your God.

With this kind of perspective, the Lord Jesus Christ will take whatever the world might call “mundane” and turn it a masterpiece for His glory! For many of your coworkers, you will be the only Bible they ever read. What have they been reading lately? How attractive have you been making your God?

The witness of your work will be an instrument of both salvation and sanctification in the hands of your Savior . . . when you are working for His glory.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!    

Is God forgetful? He certainly wouldn’t be our omniscient God who knows everything all the time if He forgets things! So how do we reconcile that truth with the following passages?

“I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sin no more.” (Isaiah 43:25)

“I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” (Hebrews 8:12)

What Isaiah and the author of Hebrews are telling us in saying that God will remember our sin no more is that, once our sins have been covered by the blood of Jesus Christ, God the Father refuses to bring them back up and hold them against us. He will never remind us of our past transgressions; it’s as if He has forgotten all about them.

And let me say that if you are being reminded of your sins, God is not the source. It could be Satan, a family member, a friend, or simply someone who wants to hurt you. But it is never God. If you have placed your trust in the atoning work of Jesus Christ, God has promised to remember your sins no more.

Another way of saying this is that when we are in Christ, God is no longer our Judge. He is “Abba, Father!” All of our sins—past, present, and still to come—have already been judged in Christ and paid for by His precious blood, shed on the cross for you and me. When Jesus said “It is finished,” He meant what He said! Never again will God hold us accountable for our sins and He will never drag them up from our past. We are freely, fully, and forever forgiven.

You and I must remember this truth moment by moment, because we don’t forget what we have done in the past. At times, the memory of our past sins can put a stranglehold on us—so much so that we seem to be frozen in place spiritually, paralyzed from making forward progress. Knowing the full forgiveness we have in Christ, strengthens us to say these words with the psalmist:

I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. (Psalm 12:5)

You see, we don’t need to try to hide our sins or cover anything up. God is faithful to forgive and we, knowing that we are fully forgiven, need only to be faithful to continually confess our transgressions and repent. This is the true freedom the Gospel brings. The next time you remember one of your past sins, remember that God chooses to remember your sins no more.

This is living life in the shadow of the cross, which is the only place where the true Light does shine into our darkness.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Everyone pursues peace. Some look for it in their personal achievement; others seek it in a relationship. Sadly, most are looking for peace in all the wrong places. But the Bible makes it clear where we will find it:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  (Galatians 1:3)

The apostle Paul made it perfectly clear where peace will be found . . . on the other side of God’s grace. The great Reformer Martin Luther wrote that “Those two words, grace and peace, contain all that belongs to Christianity, because it is God’s grace that forgives us of our sin and His peace that quiets the conscience.” Make no mistake, there is no peace apart from the grace of God. Peace simply cannot be found in anything smaller than Jesus. God designed it that way!

Think about it this way; if we could find peace apart from the Prince of Peace, we would never sense our need of Him. And the very first thing we need in order to find the peace that passes all understanding is the forgiveness of our sins. When we are in Christ and our sins are forgiven, we receive the first fruit of our justification: peace with God. We are no longer on the run from God; rather, we have been reconciled to God by the cross work of Christ. The very fact that we will never find lasting peace in anything other than Jesus tells us that He alone is what we really need and what we must pursue.

There are many things in life that are designed to disrupt our peace, from waves of challenge to seasonal storms. But when we fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, we have a peace that simply cannot be displaced, no matter what we are currently facing. The writer of Hebrews assures us that “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” (6:19). Jesus is our Almighty Anchor; when we are united to Him by grace through faith, we have a peace that cannot be shaken.

So . . . where have you been looking for peace lately? If you are searching for it in anything smaller than Jesus, you must know that lesser thing simply cannot deliver what it promises. Only the Prince of Peace can make good on His promise of peace that will strengthen you in every storm and comfort you when the waves of challenge are rolling over you.

Remember, grace always precedes peace and peace always follows grace. Keeping that truth before you will help keep His peace within you, regardless of the circumstances you are facing.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

If you spend any time watching television, you’re probably familiar with DirecTV commercials featuring the actor Rob Lowe. Today’s message of encouragement is drawn from the ad in which “regular” Rob Lowe has DirecTV and enjoys his wireless setup and great picture, unlike the “peaked in High School” Rob Lowe, who still has cable. High School Rob Lowe doesn’t mind the fact that he still has cable, he says, because he is still the captain of his high school football team. He is still wearing his high school “letter” jacket and looking to his past to find his identity in his present . . . which is paralyzing his future.

The same message is delivered in the sitcom Community, where Troy, the jock character, is still wearing his high school letter jacket at Greendale Community College. Considered his signature item with its large purple “R” embroidered on the front left of the jacket, Troy’s letter jacket serves as a constant reminder for him and all the other students of his previous life at Riverside High, where he was the star quarterback. Eventually Troy settled in to the new season of life as a college student.

QUESTION: Have you settled in to your current season of life—in whatever station this finds you in—or are you looking to your past to find your identity in the present?

“I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

There is no “peaking in high school” for the people of God. God has wonderful plans to prosper you with an unimaginable future, one built upon the foundation of a holy hope. Your identity is never to be found in your past. It is only to be found in your Prince. God has you right where you are for two incredible reasons: His glory . . . and your good! The key to living His perfect plan in your imperfect life is to learn from the past, live in the present, and lean into your promised future.

Whatever challenges you are facing today . . .

• Marriage difficulties
• Parenting a prodigal
• Opposition at the office
• Stress at school
• Friendship fallout
• Relationship speed bump
• Peer pressure

. . . your God is at work, both in you and through you. Remember, your identity is never to be found in anything you have ever done, are doing, or will ever do. Your identity is only to be found in the One who can meet you in your place of deepest need and move you into a future of unimaginable joy. This can be your daily experience when you refuse to live for anything smaller than Jesus.

Hang up that proverbial high school letter jacket and hang on to Christ alone!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!    

Let me ask you a question: do you consider yourself an optimist or a pessimist? How would those closest to you answer that question? Do you see the proverbial glass as half full . . . or half empty? Can you find the silver lining in every dark cloud . . . or the dark lining in every silver cloud?

Well, I’d like to offer you the divine directive for living a life of “Omnipotent Optimism,” regardless of the circumstances you are currently facing.

Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this. He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him. (Psalm 37:1-8)

This passage contains the framework for every believer to live a life of optimism rather than paralyzing pessimism in the life of every believer. Let’s look at two points from the passage above.

1. In the Lord — If we are not solidly grounded in our exalted position in Christ, any perceived optimism is little more than wishful thinking. It is only when, by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, we are in the Lord that we have the power available to us that will enable us to rise above any situation we are facing. Whether it is a devastating medical diagnosis, difficulty at the office, discord in our marriage, or distractions in our school life, when we are in the Lord we have the connection to the deepest source of joy that will keep our glass half full.
2. Trust . . . Delight . . . Commit . . . Be Still . . . Wait Patiently — After we understand the power of being in the Lord, we come to the divine imperatives of just how we are to live out our mystical union with Christ.

• Trust . . . in the Lord and not in your circumstances
• Delight . . . in the Lord and not in your temporal treasures
• Commit . . . to the Lord and not to the idols of your heart
• Be Still . . . before the Lord and not before your own wisdom
• Wait Patiently . . . for the Lord and do not look to your timetable

When we follow this framework in the strength of the Almighty, we will not fall into the pessimism that paralyzes those of little or no faith. These five actions steps of the Almighty transcend “the power of positive thinking” that is so popular today. Yes, it is good to think positive thoughts, but we must not stop there. We add the divine directives that God has provided in the Scriptures in order to rise above the challenges of daily living.

Because these actions steps are rooted in the Lord, we who have placed our trust in Jesus Christ’s atoning death on our behalf now possess the ability to face any challenge in life with omnipotent optimism. We know, as we go through whatever challenge or trial we are currently facing, that when we come out on the other side it will be for our good and God’s glory. Remember, “bad news” is never as bad when we view it through the promise of the Good News of the Gospel.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!    

Oh, what a word of comfort for the faithful today! Do not despair or grow fearful if you have been praying about a particular need and have not yet received an answer to your prayers. The Lord has determined the perfect time to bestow your requested blessing upon you.

Jesus went away from there, and withdrew into the district of Tyre and Sidon. And a Canaanite woman from that region came out and began to cry out, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is cruelly demon-possessed.” But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and implored Him, saying, “Send her away, because she keeps shouting at us.” But He answered and said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But she came and began to bow down before Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” And He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” But she said, “Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” Then Jesus said to her, “O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at once. (Matthew 15:21-28 NASB, emphasis added.)

How strange it seems on the surface; Jesus acknowledged that this Canaanite woman had great faith, yet He did not answer her at first, not even with a single word! The woman cried out to our Lord from the depths of her heart. She addressed Jesus in humility and with the honored titles of Lord and Son of David. Her situation was desperate, as her daughter was cruelly demon-possessed. And, to be sure, desperation always precedes deliverance. Yet often that deliverance does not come in the timing or way we expect.

Great faith does not always bring quick answers. God knows exactly what we need and the exact time we need to receive it—the time which will result in the greatest good for us and in His greatest glory. Christian, answers delayed are not answers denied! God uses the testing of our faith to strengthen our faith, and that test often comes through the silence of heaven.

When Jesus said that He was only sent to the lost sheep of Israel, He was telling this Gentile (non-Jewish) woman that a “wall of hostility” between Jews and Gentiles (Ephesians 2:14) still stood in its place. We learn from the New Testament that this wall would only come down after the death and resurrection of our Lord, when the great Gospel mystery (Ephesians 3:6) of salvation through faith in the promised Messiah would be revealed to Jew and Gentile alike.

The woman’s humble response to Jesus about the dogs being willing to receive “the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table” reveals a heart that presumed upon no blessing promised to the house of Israel. Rather, she simply hoped to find a blessing for her daughter in the overflow of God’s blessings bestowed upon the Jews. Her humility was a great as her faith, which may call to mind Jesus’ lovely assurance that “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5).

How instructive is this story for you and me today! Answers delayed are not answers denied. May our faith find its expression in trusting in our Lord, even when we cannot trace Him, knowing that in His perfect time and in His gracious way He will give us exactly what we need, never withholding it one moment longer than it is necessary for our greatest good and His majestic glory.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!    

Today marks 22 years that Kim and I have been married, so I thought I would give you a word of encouragement about the two most important things we have both learned about marriage during the course of two-plus decades: the purpose of marriage and the power in marriage.

1. The Purpose of Marriage

“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. (Ephesians 5:31-32)

Paul is telling us here that the purpose of marriage is to put the covenant-keeping love of Jesus Christ and His church on display. In other words, marriage is designed to point to our Master. Without understanding the purpose of marriage, we have a tendency to make our marriages about meeting our needs rather than displaying the love and grace of Christ.

You see, because God designed marriage, it must be more than just us; it’s about Him! Jesus underscores this truth in the following passage:

“But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’ ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.” (Mark 10:6-9)

Jesus is telling us that the making of a marriage is primarily the work of God, not man. It is God who has joined together both the husband and wife. Because of this, God is to be the central focus of marriage, and we are to put His covenant-keeping love for us on display for all the world to see, to the praise and glory of His name.

2. The Power in Marriage

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. (Ephesians 5:21-27)

I would turn this blog into a Bible commentary if I were to unpack all the truth in this passage, so for our purposes today, I simply want to focus on the first verse: “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” The power in marriage is the Lord Jesus Christ. To be sure, this passage beautifully lays out the different and divine roles husbands and wives are called by God to play in marriage. But every aspect of it is rooted in submission—by both parties!

When we focus more on laying down our lives for each other, we exalt Jesus to His rightful place in our marriages—on His throne—which means He always gets the last word. The more we submit to Jesus, the more we live in the only power that can crush every marriage-wrecking thought, word, and deed.

I said at the beginning that I hoped this article would encourage you; I hope you’ll indulge me as I close today with a few words of thanks.

I thank God for 22 years of marriage and the grace that was sufficient in every season of life we have faced so far.

I thank Him our four precious children: Brock, Jenna, Katie, and the Tank. You have witnessed it all, and, by God’s grace, I pray you will live out your marriages far more smoothly for having lived through both our successes and our failures along the way.

Finally, to my beloved Kim . . . THANK YOU! Thank you for walking alongside of me every step of the way. I could not have imagined the reality of our vows when we said them . . . in sickness and in health, in plenty and in want! Yet these words have marked our marriage, and God has used it all to transform us and conform us, a little more each day, into the image and likeness of His Son.

Kim, I cannot presume on God for another 22 years, but I hope He has ordained many more years together. I am just starting to get the hang of this “husband” thing. But regardless of the time we have left, I pray God will continue growing me into the husband He has called me to be and the husband that you deserve. I love you more than these words can possibly express.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY KIM!

Your best friend,

Tommy

Are you facing any difficult circumstances in your life right now? Perhaps there is trouble at the office? Difficulty in your marriage? The challenge of a prodigal child? Sickness and disease testing the outer edges of your health? Or maybe financial troubles? Perhaps someone you love is dealing with one of these situations? Well, regardless of the seemingly impossible circumstances we might be facing today, we must remember that with God, nothing is impossible.

The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “O Sovereign LORD, you alone know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.'” (Ezekiel 37:1-6)

Is there anything more impossible than making dead, dry bones come back to life? I think not! Unless, of course, God is at work. Because we are all broken, living in a broken world, we find ourselves in the middle of a valley of dead, dry bones from time to time. And yet God showed Ezekiel that He alone could breathe life back into those sun-bleached bones. This passage is as inspiring as it is instructive; it should remove any obstacle to our believing that our God can overcome anything we are currently facing.

Notice the rhetorical question God asks Ezekiel: “Son of man, can these bones live?” It’s not Ezekiel who asks if there is any hope for the dry bones; it is God. The Author of life can breathe new life into any situation . . . and that means any situation you are facing today. This is the God who created everything out of nothing, simply by speaking it into existence. This is the God who raised our Lord Jesus from the dead three days after His death on the cross. He can thaw cold hearts and make dead ones beat anew. The more hopeless the situation, the more hope we are to have in it. There is absolutely nothing our God cannot do, so let us not try to figure out His process. Simply trust in His promise!

Imagine for a moment that you are Ezekiel standing in the valley of dry bones. What possible process could he have conjured up to bring life back to those bones? It was unimaginable. For man, the feat was utterly impossible. But with God, Ezekiel knew, all things are possible!

By the way, notice how the passage opens:

The hand of the Lord was upon me . . .

The bottom line is this: when the hand of the Lord is upon you, you are in the absolute best of hands! Remember, greater is the power that is in you—power to accomplish anything—than the power that comes up against you. Let that truth give you all the hope you need, even in the face of a seemingly hopeless situation, because with God, the impossible will become possible!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!    

When was the last time you thought of your Savior as One who delights so much in you that He sings over you? If it has been a while—or if perhaps this idea never occurred to you before—prepare for a word of unimaginable encouragement and comfort this day!

The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.(Zephaniah 3:17)

Reading through the gospel accounts, we see the clear and consistent evidence of our Serving Savior. Just one look at the cross reminds us of our Suffering Savior. But when was the last time we thought of our Singing Savior? And yet we read in Zephaniah that our Lord rejoices over us with singing! The Hebrew phrase “he will rejoice over you with singing” can be literally translated to read, “He rejoices over you with a shout of joy.”

I grew up in a home where my mother walked around the house constantly singing over her children. At the time, I wasn’t sure if her singing was designed to bless our hearts or buffer our noise. I know now. Kim and I have four children of our own, and they spent considerable time with Momma Boland each week. All of them commented on how “Bunka” (as they called her) would walk around the house singing over them. Her singing was a sign of a heart that overflowed with love for her children and grandchildren.

Well, today’s Scripture reveals that it’s the same way with our Savior. Jesus’ heart overflows with love for all of His children and He rejoices over all of us with singing. WOW! Here is a love with such a joyful outward expression, one that is designed to inwardly bless us at the deepest level. We are so loved in the sight of our Savior that He rejoices over us with singing!

You may find this difficult to believe; perhaps your picture is one of Jesus looking sorrowfully down from heaven, grieved—perhaps even angered—by your many sins. The thought of Him rejoicing over you with singing may be almost impossible for you to believe . . . but God’s living and active Word assures us that it is true! Your Savior is singing over you, literally shouting with joy, morning, noon, and night.

So . . . how does that knowledge make you feel today?

Sing, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem! (Zephaniah 3:14)

Like Momma Boland, who rejoiced in her Lord in song for the great gift of children and grandchildren, we should all feel like singing and shouting aloud to our Lord. To be sure, we find ourselves in times of trouble, times when our hearts are filled with sorrow and pain. But if we keep our eyes fixed on our Servant Savior, our Suffering Savior, and our Singing Savior, we will weather any storm and come out on the other side of it singing with shouts of joy to the One who loved us so much that He paid to redeem us with His precious blood—and who today rejoices that we are His.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!