A PLEA FOR GRACE

A PLEA FOR GRACE
         One of the great truths of this life is that we can only really see the world through own eyes and by the contours of our own experience.     It is as though we all scuttle through existence living in the one celled prison of our own viewpoint and experience.     The difficult thing in all this is the quick and easy assumption that what we see, feel, or believe must absolutely be what someone sees, feels or believes.      How often I have heard someone proclaim a doctrine or an ideology as an inalterable truth.   How often have I sat among a gaggle of people where judgment is rolled out like a carpet and then thrown on top of a community or a person.      And, when our myopic worldview is mingled with anger or resentment,  or worse - self-righteousness, it's time for those around us to duck or get out of the way.    
          The unfortunate result of this is that there is a great deal of resentment, anger and judgment out there.    A lot of it is based on this assumption that we actually know something, when all we really know is what we ourselves think or see.   I'm reminded of the time when I was canvassing my community about how we might change or do something different.   One person came into my office, sat down and said, "I'm going to tell you what I think because if I think it, then everyone else must think it also....."     I remember this because I was so taken aback that I quickly wrote down the quote as the person was saying it.
          We all come from different perspectives and are taught by different experiences.    We all feel the light of the sun and wetness of the rain, it's true.   But we all experience it differently. 
          This is why grace is so important.    Grace is love that is unearned and even at times undeserved.   Grace is the eloquent and holy acknowledgement that everyone needs to be cut some slack.     We extend grace to someone who screws up badly.   We offer grace to someone with whom we disagree.   We receive grace when someone smiles in the face of a terrible mistake and shrugs.     And grace comes, too, when we have done our worst.    Here, grace gets called forgiveness.    
         So, because we don't see through someone else's eyes, maybe we can cut them a little slack now and then.   Because we don't carry with us the catalogue of another person's experiences, perhaps we back off and give folks a little space.....a little grace.
         It's not only a good idea for us to offer this grace to others.   If we're honest, we will admit that need grace ourselves.     Who, after all, doesn't need to be cut some slack once in a while?   Who doesn't need love....especially when they don't deserve it.
         It's my own belief that God loves us this way.     I also believe that God dares us to give it a try ourselves.   Grace.  Unearned, undeserved, unlimited love.     It's the thing that just might pull us through.   sr