You can't handle the truth...or can you?

One beautiful thing about Jesus is that 
He sees who we really are and loves us any way.  

The crazy thing, though, is that we have to be able 
to see the truth about ourselves before we can fully accept His grace.  
It might be ugly, in fact if you're anything like me, 

it definitely will be 

U.G.L.Y!!

{Pretend that spoon holds the scum I've come to face.}

I want to experience the fullness of God's grace so I wrote down the truth about me as it came to my mind, probably not everything but some things that I'm wrong about.  I found out something amazing while I was doing this...I didn't feel overwhelmed by my sinfulness, I didn't feel disgusting. I saw that yeah...while things in my life {how I speak to people, trying to control every detail, being critical or judgmental, etc.} are sinful; Jesus knows they are part of my life but is just waiting for me to give them to Him, to ask forgiveness, and accept His grace.  I don't have to wallow in that scum.

His grace wants to let me experience His love even though I do sinful things after being a Christian most of my life.  His grace waits patiently to forgive me when I finally admit I've been wrong.  His grace offers compassion to me so that I can be changed from speaking hatefully to speaking with love (1 Corinthians 13), from trying to control to trusting God's timing and plans (Matthew 6: 25-34), and from criticizing to being open and loving (1 Corinthians 13, again-it's that important). 

Truth is the front door to the warm, inviting home of grace.  

You can't know the second without embracing the first.

~Jen Hatmaker in Girl Talk