Ordinary Time 
Pause
The grace of God means something like: Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are because the party wouldn't have been complete without you. Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid. I am with you....
There's only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can be yours only if you'll reach out and take it.
Maybe being able to reach out and take it is a gift too.
Frederick Buechner in Wishful Thinking, 1973
Listen
While we were still weak, at the right moment, Christ died for ungodly people. It isn’t often that someone will die for a righteous person, though maybe someone might dare to die for a good person. But God shows his love for us, because while we were still sinners Christ died for us.
Romans 5:6-8
Think
God shows us God’s abounding grace through the biggest sacrifice possible. Even in the midst of our pride-for-the-wrong-reason moments and our failures and disappointments and unreached goals, Jesus drew his last breaths on a cross and forgave all of our shortcomings and sins. This is the ultimate gift of grace.
Through no deed or word of our own, only by the grace of God, are we able to live in confidence of our salvation. We will still mess up. We are still sinful. But we are covered by grace through the acts of a God who loves us and a Christ who patterned life for us and a Spirit who breathes among us still.
Mary Kate Deal
Pray
God of Grace, remind me of your great sacrifice. Encourage me to keep my mind on you so that I don’t get caught up in my own efforts and fail to see your love and grace for me. Amen.
Go
Take pride in God’s grace.
Accept God’s grace.
Have faith in God’s grace.
Thank God for grace.
