Have you ever been walking along and suddenly, out of nowhere, the sidewalk has a pothole that has been obscured by water, and you see it just in time to step over it, avoiding a twisted or broken ankle?
How about the times when you are driving through heavy traffic and the lights turn green, the cars move out of your way, and parking spaces open up as if by magic?
These simple examples illustrate that we are surrounded by the energy of Divine Grace. Grace acts as an umbrella that protects us from the difficult things that rain down upon us as we move along through life. Grace can offer a hand to pull us out of a hole or smooth the bumps.
Let’s take these examples to a deeper level – one that many of us may not connect with in terms of our health and well-being.
You are living life, going to work, paying your bills, having a bit of fun. On occasion (weekends, mainly) you may go to church or take the time to meditate and give thanks for all that you have. But how sincere is your intention?
Is this action driven by obligation, guilt, religious pressures – or your heart? Does taking time to connect within bring you joy, or does it feel like a burden?
Your father, brother, wife, or child is sick and in the hospital. They are hanging onto life by a thread, and the doctors don’t know what to do. Is this the kind of scenario it takes for us to be humbled? Are these situations the only way in which we are moved to reflect on our priorities and the importance of those around us with whom we are most connected? Do we need to be taken to our knees to grasp the importance of paying homage and giving thanks to the powers that be for every day we are alive and breathing?
In the best of all possible worlds, gratitude is practiced every day – in fact, every hour, every minute.
Can we really expect to receive the favor of God when we don’t take the time to appreciate the creation in which we are being and becoming? All of creation is a gift to which we must pay attention and upon which we must act.
First, we place ourselves in our heart and mind and notice. Action results from noticing. And, as we act, we receive assistance when we need it. These two steps – noticing and taking action – are essential to receiving grace.
Nature keeps track of our good deeds. Honor your God and creation, and grace can’t help but show up, and not just when you need it, but all the time.
Live as if you are being watched all the time…because you are! Remember the law of physics? “For every action, there’s a reaction.” So, what we do (or don’t do) – matters! The results of our actions (or inaction) are not so much judgments as they are consequences for the degree to which we take responsibility for our existence. None of us gets here of our own (sole) accord. If I existed by myself – how boring would that be? I am connected to all of creation, which is loved into existence by the same Source (God, Spirit, the Divine…whatever you call “It”).
The book I am writing is partially about how I had fallen from Grace (well, to be honest, I didn’t even know what that meant at the time) and how I have found my way back to living under the umbrella of Grace. My life has become enriched in ways I can’t even begin to explain. I spend time daily in meditation and in giving thanks for the smallest of things to the biggest. It has made a HUGE impact on how much universal support I receive. What’s more, this grace will continue to carry me through – even the roughest of patches.
If you don’t have a regular meditation practice and want to know more about it, you might want to check out my soon-to-be-republished meditation guide – Building the Bridge Inward through Meditation: A guide to the doorway of Divine direction and connection. If you are interested in knowing when my guide is coming out, you can email me at [email protected]
