“The blessed, unmerited favor of God has been extended to me”…the words of this song have been resounding in my head for the last few weeks. I loved that song way before I ever understood what unmerited favor was simply because women I had great respect for sang it at church.
Here lately, I have been really focusing on this unmerited favor that God extends to us. What exactly is “unmerited favor”? One word sums up it up and that is “grace”. God’s grace is extended to anyone and everyone regardless of what their past says about them. That is what makes it unmerited. We don’t do anything to deserve it; we are sinful man, it is our nature. This is the favor God showers upon us.
The world doesn’t look at the heart of man, it looks at the outside. What does this person have that others don’t? Looks, brains, clothes, height, weight, hairstyle and the list goes on. But God is not interested in what man has to offer on the outside; He is only interested in the heart. Oftentimes, this confuses a person who is searching for the fulfillment they can’t find anywhere in the world, but they also don’t understand that despite how much ugliness may be in their past, God doesn’t care. God is the Father of all mankind, but this relationship is only understood once a person gives their heart and life to Christ. Once the heart is given over, the rest follows; however, until a person takes that step it is absolutely impossible to understand God’s grace.
This grace is not just extended to those searching for forgiveness, it is also extended to those of us whom have either tried to take things back into our own hands or have walked away for a time. Whether you’re a new follower or you’ve been one for years, His grace is still extended to you every day. I recall a t-shirt I wore for years, on the front it said, “Are you far from God? Guess who moved?” on the back it said, “Draw close to God and He will draw close to you.” God doesn’t walk away from us; we put on our walking shoes and slowly (or quickly) make strides back to the ways of the world not always because we want to, but as man we are often ashamed of ourselves and forget that His grace is there to cover a multitude of sins.
I recently had a conversation with a good friend of mine, Amber. Amber will tell you in a heartbeat all about the grace of God. She wandered away for some time, but has come full circle and is now back where she belongs. Her testimony speaks for so many young women in today’s world, but the difference is she came back to the grace, the unmerited favor. Here’s what Amber has to say:
“God took me from a life completely separated from Him. I was doing things that no one should ever do and living in a way that certainly God is not ok with and still He took me back and not only forgave me for all of the horrible things I did, but blessed me beyond measure and continues to do so and He does with ANYONE who is willing to receive it.”
To know God personally is so awesome...it's amazing anyone would turn it down...they think the world is great, most don't know any better, but if they could only get a glimpse, a taste, they could know all the world offers is nothing compared to what God gives us!
When God is part of your life, your outlook is revived every time you read His word and hear of the mighty works He is doing/has done. There is contentment inside of you that nothing compares to. Amber said it well, “… with Him everything is meaningful and profound and beautiful.”
God takes your glass, whether half-empty, half-full or there is dust in the bottom, and fills it to overflowing! His unmerited favor cannot be contained in words or thoughts. It is beyond human imagination, but that is what makes it so fascinating. Why would anyone ever love me enough to give me favor without me having to do one iota in return?
“Grace, grace, God’s grace. Grace that is greater than all our sin. Grace, grace, God’s grace, Grace that is greater than all our sin.”
