1 Corinthians 14-15

(July 24, 2015)

                I have a tendency to become frustrated with myself, with my circumstances in life, and those ways I am to living up to what I think I ought to have achieved (both temporally and spiritually).  When times like that arrive, however, it is very helpful for me to remember what Paul says in these chapters – by the Grace of God we are what we are.

                This has a great deal of meaning to me.  In the first place, it shows me that when I engage in criticism (even self-criticism) of who I am and where I am in my life, I am not showing sufficient gratitude to the Lord for bringing me to the point I find myself in now.  Were I a better man, I would likely be in a better position, but to despair at my position is to deny the capacity of the Lord to bring me from where I am to where I need to be and to deny the Lord’s hand in bringing me to where I am.

                In the second place, it is a constant reminder that even when things are going very, very badly for me that this is still a blessing from the Lord because it is often through my trials that the Grace of God is made manifest to me.  In this, like in most situations in my life, the most important thing for me to remember is to be grateful in all things and trust in the Lord to make of me what He wants to make of me.