“’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.” When John Newton penned this promise, he did so out of personal experience. His greatest test came the day he buried his wife, Mary. He’d loved her and prayed his death would precede hers. But his prayer was not answered.
Yet, on the day Mary Newton died, John Newton found strength to preach a Sunday sermon. The next day he visited church members. Later he officiated at his wife’s funeral. He grieved, but in his grief he found God’s provision. He later wrote, “The Bank of England is too poor to compensate for such a loss as mine. But the Lord, the all-sufficient God speaks, and it is done. Let those who know Him, and trust Him, be of good courage.”
My friend, disease, calamity, and trouble populate your world. But they do not control it. Grace does.
*From Max Lucado’s daily post 4.25.2022 and his book, Grace: More Than We Deserve, Greater Than We Imagine
I have seen spending a lot of my devotional time in Romans the past month or so and somewhat surprise how much “grace” keeps coming up in the midst of the focus on “truth” and “theology.” If you have not been in Romans for a while, check it out. Campout in it for a month and mediate on Paul’s message to the Jews and Gentiles.
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