The Lord is Gracious

The Lord is gracious

and merciful,

slow to anger

and abounding in steadfast love. (Ps 145:8)

These four aspects of God’s character are mentioned again and again in the bible – His grace, His mercy, His being slow to anger and His abounding in steadfast love.  When reading them like this is is so easy to miss what they are really revealing about God.  So during this month oOctober I would like to take each one and focus on it, and see what new insights I gain and hopefully have a greater understanding of God Himself and who He is and how He acts true to His character.

So is week :- The Lord is gracious.  What does that mean?  What does that mean for my life in the every day?

GRACIOUS = to favour, to show kindness.  It is God dealing with His people not on the basis of our merit or worthiness, what we deserve, but on the basis on HIS goodness and generosity.  It means that God is favourably disposed towards me, that He is always inclined in kindness towards me.

That means that I don’t need to fear His judgement,  He is not out to condemn me, I do not need to be afraid of Him.  It means that I can trust Him not to hurt or disappoint me.

In grace there is a place of return.  In grace there is forgiveness.  In grace there are second chances, yes and third and fourth and fifth ones too!  In grace there is peace and healing.  In grace God is waiting for us to come, to cry out, to return

Therefore The Lord waits to be gracious to you, and He exalts Himslef to show mercy to you.  (Is 30:18)

In grace God waits for us, as a Father allows a child to go and explore, even exert his own will and waits for the child to return, so does God wait for us.  He is waiting to show us favour, He is waiting to show us kindness!

All these wonderful truths, how will I apply them, make them real to me in my everyday?

By not being afraid to come to God, not being afraid to return even when I have fallen, even when I have made mistakes, even when I have messed up big time, to know that there is always a welcome waiting for me in the Father’s arms.  And to have confidence, to step out, knowing the Lord my God is for me and seeks to show me kindness and favour.  To know I am so loved and looked upon is a beautiful thing.

What difference will it make to your life to know that the Lord is a gracious God that He looks upon you with kindness ?