Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Learning to Love God by Loving Others

Home
Progressive Christian
Father, Forgive them: God Gives More Grace

Father, Forgive them: God Gives More Grace

Last updated on: October 1, 2021 at 11:35 am by Susan E. Brooks

Father, Forgive them: God Gives More Grace 2021-10-01T11:35:23-04:00 Susan E. Brooks

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

God gives more grace, and we need to give ourselves more grace. Lately, I’ve been saying I don’t have time for plein air painting, but I need to give myself the grace to do it anyway. “Autumn Light on Beckley Creek,” Plein Air Painting by Susan E. Brooks

Recently, I’ve been reading books and listening to podcast interviews with people who’ve accomplished incredible feats of creativity or athleticism that I can’t imagine ever doing. But here’s what they all have in common—with each other and with us. We and they all have suffered and failed miserably. We’ve suffered shame, humiliation, betrayal, weaknesses, addictions, abuse—and so have those who seem to tower over us. We and they need the grace of God. And Jesus’ words on the cross, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do” may hold the key to unlock grace for some of us who have struggled to grasp it, myself included. When we mess up, as we all do, the good news is God gives more grace.

Jesus Knows Us

To start with, Jesus knows all of our secrets and our weaknesses, yet he forgives us. Think about those words he spoke on the cross, “Father forgive them.” If Jesus can forgive those who nailed him to a tree, who betrayed and deserted him, couldn’t he forgive us? I believe he will. Jesus was interceding for us while on the cross, and he is still interceding for us according to Hebrews 7:25:

Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

We always mess up, and he always intercedes. God knows what we are made of. Psalm 103:14 says, For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust.

After the past two years, how can we not realize how fragile we all are? And yet I still try to handle life on my own at times, thinking I’m strong enough.

Good News

Realizing we are dust may sound like bad news, but it’s not. It’s good news. We aren’t expected to handle everything without God. God knows what we are and still forgives and strengthens us. Maybe if God can forgive us, we can forgive ourselves and stop berating ourselves for our failures.

Here’s a trivial example, but you can fill in your own shortcomings. This morning, I couldn’t find the stamps. I knew I had packed them the last time we spent the night with the grandkids because I wanted to mail a letter to my mom. In my mind, I started in on myself: “You’re so disorganized! You never put anything away! When will you ever change and learn how to keep house?” Until I stopped myself.

Stop the Self-condemnation

Romans 8:1 says, So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus (NLT). I could have used that verse to stop my negative thoughts, but instead, God used the Rich Roll podcast to help me. Author Mel Robbins has a simple, science-backed tool that interrupts the negative spiral. Just count down from five. That’s it, and it works. Use the scripture if you want, but when stressed, saying, “5, 4, 3, 2, 1,” might be easier to remember. I calmed down and found the stamps in no time, thinking, “Why did I make such a big deal about that?”

God Gives More Grace

When it comes to grace, God wins the contest. God gives us so much more grace than we give ourselves and others. And many times, we give others much more grace than we give ourselves. Whether it’s with a scripture or a countdown, stop the self-flagellation and give yourselves and others more grace. We all need a little extra right now.

Any suggestions on how to forgive ourselves and others? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!

I’m an artist who loves to write. If you’d like to get to know me better, please follow me on social media.

My Blog: susanebrooks.com

Instagram @sebrooks81 (Mostly Art)

Facebook, Susan E. Brooks, Artist,

Twitter @sebrooks81

Art

Following Jesus

General Christian Topics

Previous Post

September 29, 2021

Simplicity and Minimalism: Do Christians Need to Be Minimalists?

Next Post

October 9, 2021 Beside Me in the Dark: The Lord Surrounds HIs People

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Art Discipleship dreams and Goals emotional health Following Jesus General Christian Topics God's Love Grace Hearing God identity in Christ Marriage prayer Raising Children Relationships and family sacrificial love Social Justice spiritual focus spiritual growth Trusting God Uncategorized

Select a Month December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz