Wings of the Dawn

Awake the grace that you have shown –
Though all my sins from birth you’ve known –
The grace that showed my dire need
For heart and soul to be set free.  

Awake the grace that knows the law,
Looks to myself to find the flaw,
That knows the price for sin is death –
Knows grace cost Jesus His last breath.

Awake the grace that brings the peace
That makes the selfish quarrels cease.
For grace is pay for what’s not earned.
It’s love despite – it’s undeserved.

Awake the grace that moves my feet,
That goes into the city street,
That prays with vigor and with might
For Light to break through desperate nights. 

Awake the grace that knows by faith,
That not by might but by your grace
The world will change and soon will sing
“Amazing Grace” to Christ the King. 

Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace you have been saved through faith.
And this is not your own doing;
it is the gift of God,
not a result of works,
so that no one may boast.

This morning the rising sun was leaving shadows of my Christmas tree on the wall of my living room. I was reminded that this Christmas, like all the other ones which came before, will soon be a memory.

BUT GOD … Has loved us so much, that the very first Christmas would not just be a fading memory, but would provide an opportunity for the HOPE OF HEAVEN, Jesus Christ, to take up permanent residence in our hearts. Unlike our Christmas memories, He will never leave nor forsake us.

“Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and       thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe,”
Hebrews 12:28 

I had lined up the Christmas packages on the postoffice counter so the clerk could process them. While he weighed them and added my postage, I stuck stamps onto individual envelopes in a stack of Christmas cards. People behind me filed into lines. I felt an invisible push to hurry.
I was proud that I had gotten my gifts and cards out early this year – until a few days later.

It occurred to me, days after I had left the postoffice, that one particular Christmas letter in that stack, one I handwritten with care and much thought, would never make it to its destination. With an overseas address it needed much more postage than just a regular stamp. In my hurry I had forgotten to pull it out of the stack and pay for it separately. The postage stamp I had used was not sufficient to get the letter all the way to my friend’s house. My heart sank.

I am reminded of our many futile efforts to communicate with God. We try to manipulate God’s ear to our cries and use our own ways to try to break through the silence that pours down from Heaven. But like my letter, our intentions often appear futile and our words seem to be wrapped up in insufficient means which never reach the heart of God.

There is a way that assures our communication with the Father. This Way is Jesus. In Jesus Christ, God came close, into our world, to dwell among us and to show first hand how much He loves us. Jesus shed His blood on a cross to pay for our sins, so they would no  longer stand in the way between us and the Father. In a way Jesus sheds His blood to pour it all over our letters to God as sufficient payment. When we place our faith in Jesus and His provisions, our laments never leave our hearts with insufficient means to reach the destination.

This Christmas, put your faith in the provision your Maker has made for an intimate relationship with Him. Trust in Jesus Christ. He has come to make a sure way to the Father.

“Lord, I pray You revive us! Draw us toward Yourself.
Help us understand that our dire need is for Your sufficient Provision
– Jesus Christ.”

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God,  let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”
Hebrews 10:19-25