ODJ: Grace in the Ordinary

October 25, 2018 

READ: 2 Corinthians 4:1-18 

As God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory (v.15).

Every Wednesday evening from 6 to 7, rain or shine—or even snow—our little band of disciples gathers in our church’s tiny chapel to pray. Our prayer meeting is open to everyone, but there are usually just four to ten people who gather together.

If you attended our meeting, using the world’s measurements for success, you wouldn’t be impressed. We’re a motley crew. One person is bipolar. Another is experiencing physical and mental deterioration due to Parkinson’s. One suffers debilitating anxiety. Another is overcoming the fallout of sexual abuse, poverty, alcoholism and other suffering. Others worry about children and spouses not following Jesus. And several of us are ever depending on God for financial provision.

Yet these things don’t define us. We’re defined by God’s love and His abounding grace. When I think of our little prayer group, I believe the verses from 2 Corinthians 4:15-17 epitomise who we are: “As God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory. That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever.”

Our Wednesday night prayer meeting is my anchor. Even though we attendees are imperfect, our prayer meeting is one place where we can weekly experience God’s grace and His power being made perfect in our challenges: “[God] said, ‘My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness’ ” (2 Corinthians 12:8-10). Where do you experience grace in the ordinary?

—Marlena Graves

365-day plan: Acts 11:1-18