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The Words of Todd

This Is Your Brain on Grace

Last updated on: April 26, 2021 at 2:46 pm   by Todd R. Vick

This Is Your Brain on Grace 2021-04-26T14:46:47-04:00 Todd R. Vick

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.

Do you ever feel worthless? Do you feel like no one notices you?

Walk outside today. Do you hear the birds singing? They are doing that just for you. Take a walk. Do you see the wind-blown flower petals on the ground? They were placed there just for you to walk on.

Ever seen a butterfly? They are there to remind you that your cocoon of defeat is not permanent. You can and will become more.

You’re not worthless or unnoticed, my friend. You just need to start thinking better thoughts. Your mind is willing to accept new ways of thinking and to be reprogrammed the way you want it to be.

Think new thoughts. Want new wants. Feel better feelings. Become what you are already meant to be – loved, wanted, needed, and accepted. Give this gift of mind renewal to yourself. You totally deserve it. You are enveloped in grace!

You and I get to choose who we invite to sit at the table of our minds. Draw your attention now, if you will to the amazing centerpiece of this table. We call it grace, and it is truly amazing as the old song says, “Amazing Grace! How sweet the sound!” Notice it is not a question, but a proclamation of the sweet sound of grace! Trust me, having a closer look at grace is a tremendous step towards transformation and the renewing of our minds!

Grace is God’s way of saying to us, “I love you and there is nothing you can do to change that fact. And guess what? I love you because I choose to and for no other reason.” This may seem like a general statement but read it again! Especially that part where God chooses to love us. Here is a humbling thought: he could choose not to love us, but he chooses the former. There are so many references to grace in the Bible. Conservative Evangelicals tend to offer grace, but often with way too many conditions. God’s grace is unconditional. He chooses to love us because he can and for no other reason.

When we were created, the Bible teaches that we were made in the image of God. The trouble with that statement is that no one has ever seen God. Scripture teaches that God is spirit (neither male nor female). Basically, there is no “image” of God to compare ourselves to. Scripture mentions God as both father and mother. The way we are created in God’s image is in the fact that, like God, we are divinely created beings with the power to choose. God chose to create us. Then chooses (present tense) to love us. Every minute of every day, God makes the choice to love you. The Bible also describes God as, “Dancing around wildly at the thought of you.” Let your brain soak that information in. Let it fire the neurons to your brain synapses and plant itself in your subconscious. Max Lucado once wrote, “If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it.”

Face it, my friend. God adores you, just as you are right now, and there’s not a damned thing you can do to stop it!

And there never will be!

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