Lens of Grace

Awhile ago, we got a comic book for Flick which had a ‘camera’ attached, a camera which showed pictures of various fairy-tale princesses. It took Flick a little while to figure out how to see through the finder and view the pictures, but she mastered it. It’s not easy learning to close one eye while keeping the other open.

Paul wrote that we see ‘through a glass darkly’. We don’t get the full picture, and can be disappointed and discouraged because our perspective is narrow and our focus can be more on ourselves than on those we are feeling disappointed in.

It is hard to distance oneself from events so that the outcomes don’t seem personal, but usually there are valid reasons for other peoples’ actions or reactions. I heard a powerful talk once in which the speaker declared she decided never to allow anyone, or anything, to offend her.

It’s called grace. It’s the way God sees us, through a lens of grace. And it’s the way we should see others. Like Flick trying to see through the finder, it takes practice to allow God to broaden our vision and erase our own expectations and feelings from the picture. A lifetime of practice, and the help of the Holy Spirit.

Living in grace, though, is living life to the full. Which is what Jesus died to give us.