Month: April 2025

face to face

Posted on by Grace Day

The room was full of people and yet it was strangely quiet. I looked around but couldn’t make eye contact with anyone. I asked a question and was a little put out that no one answered until I realized that no one heard me. The explanation for this is not hearing loss, but the fact that if not wearing headphones, which are obvious, most had earbuds in, which meant they were listening to something or someone else, rendering them oblivious to their present surroundings, which included me. Everyone seemed to be “otherwise occupied.” Translation – they were all looking intently at their phones.

Whatever happened to the popular mantra – “be fully present where you are”? or “be fully present in the moment”? It seems to have been replaced with “don’t engage with those physically present with you – it could be difficult, draining or downright dangerous.” The cyberspace world is more comfortable for people today, I guess. Maybe because it is more easily controlled? (I can make a quick exit at any time with the added bonus of blaming it on technology if I need to throw someone under the bus) Maybe it’s because cyberspace requires less of me than personal interactions do? Or is it because people say things online that they wouldn’t say in person, face to face, with cyberspace’s anonymity and distance providing cover from any immediate consequences?

Do we now relegate reality to something to be avoided in favor of cyberality? Ok – cyberality is not officially a word, but new words get added to the lexicon every day. I submit “cyberality” as a new word for this year. Actually, this is long overdue. We are spending increasingly more time online, or in cyberality, than ever before. This leaves us less time to spend with the people who are physically present with us in the moment, or at best our attention is divided between the two worlds – cyberality and reality. We are rendered both more connected and more isolated simultaneously as we choose to spend more of our time online and less of our time interacting in person with the people around us, whether that be at the dinner table, at work or wherever we are.

BUT – cyberality, cyber relationships, all the time we spend online – none of this seems to satisfy us. Instead we are lonelier than ever. We continue to long for more. Which makes sense because we were created for more. We were created for relationship by a personal Creator who created you and me specifically for relationship with Him and for relationships with each other. Job gave voice to this innate desire of ours to know our Creator, when he said –

“I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see Him with my own eyes – I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” (Job 19:25-27)

Job longed for the face to face encounter with God, as we all do if we are honest about our deepest desires, those we dare not voice even to ourselves. Ecclesiastes gives us a clue as to why this is so –

“He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

You and I were created for personal relationships, relationships born out of and sustained by face to face encounters. Anything less leaves us longing for something more than what cyberality provides. Paul describes our plight this way in Corinthians –

“Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.” (1 Corinthians 13:12)

I wonder if today this verse would more accurately read “now we see but a poor reflection on a phone screen or a computer screen”, since this seems to be a primary mode of interaction with others, too often replacing face to face interactions. This explains why you and I can be lonely in a room full of people. You or I may be present with others in body but that is all. If I am, or those around me are, gazing intently into phone screens, they become as invisible to me as I am invisible to them, as long as we remain focused solely on our phone screens.

Remember the old expression “phoning it in”? It means giving a half-hearted effort, going through the motions or doing the bare minimum. This expression is said to have originated in the 1930’s as a joke among theater actors who had such a small role, they said they could call on the phone rather than appear on the stage in person. How ironic that today we allow our phones to substitute for in person interactions we would otherwise have. We “phone it in” in our personal relationships.

My Heavenly Father does not want me to “phone it in” when it comes to my relationship with Him. After all, He didn’t “phone it in” – He left heaven and came here in the flesh, in person – in the person of Jesus Christ. He came to give you and I the face to face interaction that we desperately needed to experience. John tells us –

“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)

The face to face experience – that is what you and I were created for. This is what we long for. This is why the poor reflection of a mirror or of a phone screen, cannot ultimately satisfy our longing for real relationships. Only the face to face encounter can do that. King David knew this to be true. (way before phone screens even existed) Must be why he said this to God in a psalm –

“Because I am righteous, I will see You. When I awake, I will see You face to face and be satisfied.” (Psalm 17:15)

King David was satisfied with the face to face, something that our online, cyberality experience can never truly do for us. Real life relationships are harder, more painful but ultimately more rewarding and more satisfying. Jesus came to give us the face to face experience at great cost to Himself and great benefit for me and for you, dear readers. And now we have this to look forward to –

“Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelation 21:3-4)

no more “through a glass darkly” or “poor reflection in a mirror” or phone screen cyberality relationships – just the true reality of the face to face in God’s glorious Presence! I will gladly trade in my phone screen for that! How about you?

sincerely, Grace Day

palm branches and talking rocks

Posted on by Grace Day

We made our way down the aisles of the church, waving palm branches and singing a joyful hosanna song – the “we” being the young children in our Sunday School classes and us, their teachers. This morning, memories of other Palm Sundays long ago came alive again as I remembered well doing this very same thing as a child in my own church. Nothing has changed, maybe because the event we remember and recreate on Palm Sunday is the same one we’ve been celebrating for centuries – Jesus’s coming into Jerusalem riding on a donkey. This scene of celebration is described for us by John –

“The next day the great crowd that had come for the Feast heard that Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet Him, shouting,

‘Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the King of Israel!’

Jesus found a young donkey and sat upon it, as it is written, ‘Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.’ ” (John 12:12-15)

Matthew also recorded this joyous occasion that we are still remembering and celebrating every year on Palm Sunday –

“The disciples went and did as Jesus instructed them. They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of Him and those that followed shouted,

‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!’ ” (Matthew 21:6-9)

Mark describes what happened in this way –

“When they brought their colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, He sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,

‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!’ ” (Mark 11:7-10)

and lastly, Luke gives us this account of what has come to be called “Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem” –

“They brought it (the colt) to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. As He went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. When He came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:

‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’

Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, rebuke your disciples!’ ‘I tell you,’ He replied, ‘if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.’ ” (Luke 19:35-40)

It’s clear from these eye-witness accounts that the crowds of people were joyful as they praised God and they were quite loud as they shouted their “hosannas” and their “blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord” and multiple other shouts of joy at Jesus’s arrival in their city. They were praising God enthusiastically and unashamedly. They were worshipping Jesus as the “King of Israel” and the “Son of David.” Their joy was unrestrained, their voices resounded loudly, as all the accounts testified, from “those that went ahead of Jesus and from those who followed Him” – the echoes of this loud celebration could be heard throughout the city of Jerusalem.

That must be why the Pharisees in the crowd did what they did and said what they said to Jesus. Remember? They asked Jesus to “rebuke” His disciples because His disciples along with all the other people in the very large crowd were too loud. Way to kill the joy of the moment and put an end to the celebration of Jesus’s return to Jerusalem, right? The Pharisees were nothing if not kill joys.

BUT – they didn’t succeed in silencing this celebration of Jesus as God’s long-awaited Messiah and King. Not this day! Jesus refused to quiet the Hosannas of the large crowds. Instead, Jesus pointed out a fun fact the Pharisees should have known from studying their scriptures. Even if the people present did get quiet, the praise and the celebration would still continue because, Jesus said – “if they (the people) keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

One translation puts it this way – “if they keep quiet, the stones along the road will burst into cheers.” (Luke19:40/NLT) I like that imagery – the image of traditionally stoic stones breaking into cheers and chants of praise for their Creator. It’s easier for me to imagine roaring lions, trumpeting elephants or howling wolves giving their Creator loud praise than it is to think about a rock bursting into song. I wonder if that’s why Jesus mentioned stones specifically out of all of creation? In Psalm 66 I read –

“All the earth bows down to You; they sing praise to You, they sing praise to Your name.” (Psalm 66:4)

It’s one thing for all the various songbirds to sing God’s praises. That’s what they were born to do, whether nightingales, warblers, bluebirds or even woodpeckers, who comprise the percussion section of the bird chorus. I hear babbling brooks, whispering or whistling winds, rustling leaves, crashing waves, thunder, lightning, buzzing bees, the chorus of bullfrogs and summer night’s crickets making music after dark – all of creation really does seem to be perpetually making a joyful noise to their Creator – except perhaps stones. I don’t really hear much from them, to be honest.

But Jesus said even the stones would break their ages long silence and cry out if all the people shouting His praises were suddenly forced to be silent. Stones, too, are a part of God’s creation and they will not be denied the opportunity to participate in praising His name along with the rest of His creation. I get it. I want my voice to be counted among the chorus of praise as well. It’s an ongoing, never ceasing, concert of jubilation and praise and I want to be always participating in this earthly, eternal choir! Isaiah says –

“the mountains and hills will burst into song before You, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.” (Isaiah 55:12)

Creation’s praise of God is one never ending song, as it says in Psalms –

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” (Psalm 19:1-4)

That’s what the Pharisees should have known – that God’s creation always praises Him and they had no authority to require silence from anyone or from any part of God’s creation, even the smallest rocks and stones. While rocks and stones may be lesser recognized voices among God’s creation choir, they too are giving glory to God in their own way, twenty-four/seven, along with the shining stars, the pounding waves, the cry of the loon across the lake. The towering cliffs and deep canyons of rock and stone cry out in praise of their Creator all day long. Their majesty, beauty and uniqueness reflect God’s glory continuously along with all the rest of God’s creation.

The Pharisees should have known what the psalmist declared so many centuries before –

“Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths, lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do His bidding, you mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars, wild animals and all cattle, small creatures and flying birds, kings of the earth and all nations, you princes and all rulers on earth, young men and maidens, old men and children. Let them praise the name of the Lord, for His name alone is exalted; His splendor is above the earth and the heavens.” (Psalm 148:7–13)

We were not silent on Palm Sunday. We praised God with palm branches and joyful Hosannas in the sanctuary. But don’t tell me that outside the church, the rocks and stones of the surrounding streets and yards, weren’t also singing praises to their Creator with the same joyful jubilation as the trees, the flowers, the birds and all the rest of God’s creation.

“Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.” (Psalm 150:6)

and also those things that don’t – even boulders, stones and the rocks of the road –

sincerely, Grace Day

irony to the “mth” degree

Posted on by Grace Day

My last post was all about second chances, actually second, second chances to be specific. My days are filled with them. Some are obvious and others I am oblivious to, not realizing the grace I have been granted. However, I don’t want to take any of my second chances for granted or to be unaware that I have received yet another second chance. Being aware of all the different ways God grants me mercy every day, leads me to thankfulness. If I don’t realize the grace I’ve been granted, I fail to appreciate the magnitude (and the kindness) of God’s protection, provision and patience with me on a daily basis. My Heavenly Father’s patience is what allows me all these second chances. I want to remember to thank Him –

“Let them (me) give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for men. Let them (me) sacrifice thank offerings and tell of His works with songs of joy.” (Psalm 107:21-22)

Now some second chances are more dramatic than others. The near miss in traffic or being spared power outages and property damages in last week’s intense storms, as I was, leads me to “give God thanks with a grateful heart” as the song says. Interestingly, I just experienced a very ironic “second chance” shortly after completing the previous post – “second, second chances.” You can’t make this stuff up.

A few hours after publishing the post, I closed a tab from my “mtothe5th” site on another computer and somehow the “second, second chances” post was deleted except for the first paragraph! I couldn’t believe it. One thousand plus words had just vanished! I was panicked. I checked and rechecked, but the post was now just one paragraph long. All that time and effort gone. Gone where? To the cloud? Had technology stolen the very personal sharing of my heart and life experience?

You should know the backstory on this, dear readers. Technology and I are not on the best of terms. We have a love/hate relationship. I can’t decide whether she is a friend or a foe. She has played the role of both in my life. Still, I often feel that technology hates me without reason. I don’t hate her, but I don’t trust her either. Technology is so fickle and unpredictable. Just when I think I’ve got her figured out, she goes and does something like this. She steals what I labored over for so long. My post had literally disappeared from my blog and from cyberspace. I couldn’t retrieve it no matter what keys I hit on the keyboard.

If technology had stashed my post in the cloud, I have no idea where this elusive cloud resides, nor do I have the keys to gain access to all that the cloud hoards within her mysterious vastness. I thought all was lost. Until I found a way to a second chance. It occurred to me that my post had already gone out a few hours prior and that there were those who would have received it via email. Would their emails have disappeared also? I called a friend to find out the answer to this very important question.

Enter my second chance! My friend had received the email and it did contain the full text of my vanished post. However, technology would not let her forward this email to me. I guess technology was not giving up my post without a fight. BUT – my friend was able to print out her email which contained the full text of my post. I gladly went to her home to pick it up! Now I had in my hands the concrete evidence of my day’s labor. I had not labored in vain!

I now had the opportunity to restore my vanished post to the blog. This was definitely a second chance for this post about, of all things, “second chances”. Hence the irony. The post about second chances that was stolen away from me (or I inadvertently hit some wrong key on the computer) was now returned to me, giving the post its second chance to be published. What remained was for me to retype it into the computer, which I gladly did. My “second, second chances” post was itself getting a second chance! The irony of this is not lost on me, probably because it is off the charts inescapable! And while I totally appreciate the humor in this particular second chance scenario, the initial panic I felt when I thought all was lost, is easily recalled.

My Heavenly Father continues to give me forgiveness and second chances, some are just more obvious or in this case, more ironic, than others. But hopefully each second chance gets my attention, causes me to give thanks and compels me to take advantage of the “do over” and do better. I keep thinking eventually I’ll get some of these repeat opportunities, some of these second chances, right. After all –

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are (I am) not consumed, for His compassions (mercies) never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23)

“new every morning” – that’s the beauty, the hope and the promise of the second chances God gives to me – they are like His manna and His mercy – they are new every morning!

sincerely, Grace Day

second, second chances

Posted on by Grace Day

“Dodged a bullet” – that’s what they say when something bad or harmful or negative could have happened to you BUT – it didn’t. Therefore, you dodged a bullet. It’s a common enough expression, used often, probably because our days are filled with near misses or dodged bullets, even if we are unaware of just how many bullets miss us each day. Maybe ignorance is bliss, but I think not. If I truly recognize how many times I have been rescued, how many times I have been spared from some hurt or harm or danger or disaster – this knowledge should lead me to gratitude every time – gratitude to my Heavenly Father, who watches over me, whose mercies towards me never cease. After all,

“My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip – He who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you – the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm – He will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” (Psalm 121:2-8)

This has been a week of particularly stormy spring weather here, complete with lightning, thunderstorms, heavy rains, high speed winds and even some tornado touchdowns one evening. We have been under weather advisories multiple evenings and I have found myself driving in some challenging conditions this week. I have definitely dodged a few bullets on the pothole filled roads this week, (post – “pitfalls and potholes”) resulting in multiple second chances for me and for my car.

BUT – in truth, is this me dodging bullets, due to my skill, dexterity, wisdom and wits? OR – is this me receiving God’s freely given, undeserved grace, mercy and protection over my daily life? I think we both know this is the latter and never the former. I am not a skilled bullet dodger in the least. But God is a skilled protector and a merciful giver of second, second chances. And I am the thankful recipient of all those second, second chances that His mercy and His protection give to me. My response? I definitely say with the psalmist –

“Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits – who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” (Psalm 103:2-5)

My Heavenly Father “forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases” cancelling my debt and setting me free again and again. (just like the fellow in my previous post – “second chances”) I experience this on a daily basis, although some of my rescues are more dramatic than others and some of my cancelled debts are larger than others. Nonetheless, I want to be aware of and thankful for each and every one of my second, second chances, of every forgiven sin, every cancelled debt that I never could have paid myself.

Just this past week, I received yet another kind of second chance. It started with a medical test that required “more testing”, meaning – maybe something is wrong, let’s take a closer look. So in the interim between first and second tests, I lived with the possibility of this diagnosis being reality. When the second test revealed “nothing to see here, false alarm”, it was for me a new beginning, a clean slate. I was freed from the burden that this diagnosis would have entailed, a great weight was lifted from me, my debt was wiped away, there would be no “jail time” for me due to illness. I have been given yet another second chance.

Now that I have been set free, what will I do with my new-found freedom? Go back to my old life? Do what the guy in my previous post did when his debt was forgiven and he was set free? FYI – he was so grateful to have his debt forgiven, that his first act as a forgiven, free man was to go out and send to prison the first person he came across who owed him an inconsequentially small sum of money. (Matthew chapter 18 – the parable of the unmerciful servant) No, that is NOT how I want to live out my debt free, sins forgiven, bailed out of jail life.

Maybe I should think about sharing the good news that I have experienced with others, letting them know that they too can have second, second chances in this life. God is not stingy with His forgiveness, nor with His mercy and lovingkindness. In fact, in Psalms I read –

“He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on His children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him; for He knows how we are formed, He remembers that we are dust.” (Psalm 103:10-14)

It’s not that I have been getting better at dodging bullets, or that I have been dodging bullets at all. The truth is that God is being gracious to me and continues to give me undeserved, unearned second, second chances every day as I walk with Him. I want every second chance God gives me, to conform me a little closer to His image and to His will. So that the next time God forgives me for saying harsh words instead of kind words, His forgiveness will change me, so much so, that when given that next second chance – I will say the kind words He desires, instead of the harsh or hurtful words I might speak if left unchanged by His forgiveness and love.

However, I will allow God’s forgiveness to change me. I will not squander away the precious gift of second chances, (like the unmerciful servant) nor of second, second chances, nor of all the second chances God gives after that. Each second chance is a gift. I will thank my Heavenly Father for each and every one of them that He sends my way. And God gives me these second chances at just the right time. Just when I think I’ve messed up too bad to come back from whatever it is, I’m reminded of others who must have thought this very same thing. They believed that they too, had used up all their second chances with God.

There was the prodigal son, the disciple Peter and the thief hanging on the cross beside Jesus, to name a few. Each one of these had messed up big time with some really bad decisions. BUT – each one was rescued, forgiven, and restored to family, to their calling, and to eternal life respectively. The Good News of the Gospel – you and I are offered a second chance every day. I just have to humble myself, confess my failure and ask God for forgiveness. God is faithful to respond by giving me that second chance. Then I must be brave enough to accept the opportunity and face the challenge that a second chance always brings with it. In humility I pray King David’s prayer –

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. . . . Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. . . . Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. . . . Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” (Psalm 51:1-2, 7, 10 & 12)

Second, second chances – King David received them multiple times. And so did a most unlikely woman – the infamous woman caught in adultery. Her second chance encounter with Jesus was truly dramatic. She was called to account publicly, in front of a large crowd, by the religious leaders of the day. However, this situation intended for public humiliation of the woman and for catching Jesus in some legal misstep, didn’t unfold as the religious leaders had planned. Instead, it ended with the woman receiving a much needed second chance in life. Their law demanded that the woman be stoned to death for her crime of adultery. BUT – Jesus said to the crowd,

” ‘If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’ . . . At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ ‘No one, sir,’ she said. ‘Then neither do I condemn you,’ Jesus declared. ‘Go now and leave your life of sin.’ ” (John 8:7-11)

This woman received her second chance – a clean slate, her past forgiven, her sin debt paid, no jail time, no more death penalty hanging over her head – she was free – free to go and live a new life, a life free from the bondage of sin! Talk about your second chances! Yours and mine, dear readers, our second chances are no less miraculous, no less life changing, no less undeserved, but just as earnestly desired and needed as was this woman’s.

Every second chance is a miracle. Every second chance is a gift from God.

Thank You, Heavenly Father, for every second chance You give me. May I not waste a one of them!

sincerely, Grace Day

second chances

Posted on by Grace Day

We all need them – at least I know I do and God gives them to me and to you every day, those wonderful, necessary, life-giving, hope filled second chances. (sometimes called “do overs”)

“He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.” (Psalm 103:10)

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His mercies never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23)

I am so thankful for my Heavenly Father’s limitless supply of mercy towards me. He gives me this on a daily basis, new every morning, just like the life sustaining manna that miraculously appeared new every morning in the desert, keeping the Israelites alive in that barren land. When I realize I got it wrong and I desire forgiveness and an opportunity to try again I trust in this promise from His word –

“If I confess my sin, He is faithful and just and will forgive me my sin and purify me from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

My Heavenly Father’s forgiveness gives me the second chance I so desire over and over and over again. So what do I do with all these second chances? I don’t want to take God’s mercy and forgiveness for granted. I want to be changed by His love for me, a love that never gives up on me. I sure don’t want to be like the guy in this one story – you know the one, right? There was this servant who owed a huge debt to the king, a debt so big he could never repay it, even if he worked his entire life to pay it off. So what happened? Well . . .

“The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.” (Matthew 18:27)

This is unexpected, undeserved and unbelievable. Not only did the servant not go to jail, the debt was canceled, forgiven, wiped away – he no longer owed anything, he was free! So what did this person do with his new-found freedom, his surprise second chance? Well . . .

“But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded. His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ But he (the forgiven servant) refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt.” (Matthew 18:28-30)

Now – some fun facts you might want to know. How much debt had the king forgiven this man who refused to forgive his fellow servant? Here’s the backstory –

“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.” (Matthew 18:23-25)

BUT – remember what happened? “The servant’s master took pity on him, (mercy) canceled the debt (forgiveness) and let him go. (freedom)” Now here’s the fun fact, the debt of “ten thousand talents” is a debt equal to millions of dollars! No wonder he would never be able to repay it. In comparison, his fellow servant owed him “a hundred denarii” – or a debt equal to only a few dollars.

The man who had been forgiven an unpayable debt, the man who had been given a second chance – this man could not find it in his heart to forgive his fellow servant even a few dollars. Unbelievable! (remember, he had his fellow servant thrown in prison for owing him just a few bucks) God gives me so many second chances every day. I want to make the most of each and every second chance that God graciously gives me. I don’t want to go back to my old ways after being forgiven. I want every second chance to change me, transforming me little by little into the person God is calling me to be.

It will ultimately require more second chances than I can count to accomplish God’s good purposes in me, but fortunately, my Heavenly Father does not give up on me! And He’s not stingy with the second chances. He keeps on offering me second chances filled with His forgiveness, hope and encouragement. All He asks of me is that I do the same for others.

“For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:14-15)

That’s pretty clear. Unfortunately, the servant forgiven of his great debt didn’t make very good use of his second chance. He went right out and had his fellow servant put in prison for an insignificant debt against him. What happened after that? Well . . .

“When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened. Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. This is how my Heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.” (Matthew 18:31-35)

I don’t want to blow any second chances God gives me like this guy did. If God can forgive me of my huge debt, certainly I can forgive other people their very small debts. I am overwhelmed daily with God’s mercy and forgiveness to me, new every morning – yet another undeserved second chance. I cannot keep that to myself. I will give the gift of a second chance to anyone and everyone, forgiving any debt they might owe me, knowing it is infinitesimally small compared to the debt I owe to God.

Thank You, God, for second chances.

” ‘Come now, let us reason together,’ says the Lord. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.’ ” (Isaiah 1:18)

sincerely, Grace Day