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Wednesday, November 23, 2011

The Other Side of Grace

Grace is what I'm most thankful for this year.  Yep, grace!  All my life, my parents were faithful to instill in me, a knowledge of what God's grace did for us, on the cross; forgiveness, righteousness, cleansing.  I've always looked at grace that way...I've been forgiven by someone who paid my debt for me and grace was extended to me.

But this year, I've come to experience another side of God's grace.  His grace that carries us through the things of life that are hard and messy and hurtful.  This side of His grace is the stuff hope is made of.  It's what carries us through to the other side, from pain to victory.  It's His strength in us.  I'm so grateful for this precious gift.  It wasn't a gift that came all wrapped up neatly with a pretty bow.  It came in the midst of prayer and tears and waves of emotions that were often paralyzing.  It came through pressing in and hanging on to a faithful God.

Oh, dear reader, I don't want you to think that I have a heavy heart here.  With God's grace comes deep joy and that's where I am...in the midst of peace and joy.  So I am thankful for grace...every bit of it...the forgiveness, the cleansing, the peace and the joy.

I wish everyone of my readers a joyous Thanksgiving, a sweet time surrounded by loved ones and the gift of grace.

I'm joining with Joan at Reflections of His Grace.  Visit there to see what God is laying on the hearts of other wonderful believers!

From His lap,


32 comments:

  1. Erin, you are so talented! What a lovely piece about Thanksgiving & grace. Hau'oli La Ho'omakika'i! (Happy Thanksgiving in Hawaiian). I look forward to tweeting with you! @ShareLiberty Aloha #USConstitution

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  2. Beautiful post Erin! Have a blessed Thanksgiving today. Chelle

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  3. I love your musis Erin, it's very healing.

    Thank you for sharing, I'm loathe to leave your site (lol good trick - might have to borrow the idea)

    I am also thankful for God's grace, He saved me and that is something I can never repay.

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  4. Erin, may God bless you with a joyous and tastefully sweet Thanksgiving with your family and friends, this beautiful day. I pray that He will continue to pour His love, grace, and blessings over you as you stretch and grow into new beginnings. I pray that you will walk forward in faith knowing God's carrying you and His perfect plan for your life in His mighty hands of peace and protection. Amen.

    Trust Him always...spread your beautiful wings and fly! Happy Thanksgiving, my friend. I'm forever grateful for the blessing of you and for our sweet friendship.

    ~I love you,
    Rosann

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  5. Dear Erin,

    This so beautiful! I too am so grateful for GOD's grace. He has kept me this year through unemployment, a car accident that left me with broken ribs and a totaled mini-van, an anxiety disorder that came from being afraid of cars after my accident.

    I know that I have been saved by his blood and given eternal life because of his life, death and his grace. There is no greater gift that I can receive and for this I am truly Thankful!

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  6. Wendy,
    La Ho'omakika'i! I'm so grateful that you stopped by to say hi. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family and I'll see you on twitter!!
    Blessings,
    ~Erin

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  7. Thank you, Chelle. You too! I'm ready for a couple of days being surrounded by family, memories and laughs!
    Blessings,
    ~Erin

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  8. For the last 2 years, I have had a crash course in living and surviving God's grace in life's messy challenges. I could not have survived without it:) Praying for overcoming, for seeing the results hoped for in those faith challenge moments!!!

    Have a blessed, joy-filled, peace-filled Thanksgiving season!

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  9. Amen to that, Erin! May you and your family have a very blessed day of giving Thanks and Praise for all He is and all He has done for us.

    Susan

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  10. Florence,
    You just stay as long as you like. Let your spirit and soul be ministered to! I love your site and I just left a comment and a song for you!
    Happy Birthday and Happy Thanksgiving!
    Hugs,
    ~Erin

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  11. Rosann,
    Thank you for that beautiful prayer. I receive every word of it and pray the same for you. You are such a blessing to me!
    Happy Thanksgiving!
    ~Erin

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  12. Wow, Sammie,
    You've had a lot to overcome this year. I hope that you've let the grace of God carry you and fill you with hope! He doesn't want you to struggle with anxiety. Press into Him and let Him replace that fear with joy and peace! I will be praying for you!
    Thank you so much for stopping by and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
    Blessings,
    ~Erin

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  13. Erin - this is beautiful. I too have experienced the other side of God's grace and it has brought me through a lot of difficult times.

    Wishing you and your family a joyful, grace-filled Thanksgiving.

    Blessings,
    Joan

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  14. Blue Cotton Memory,
    I just left your blog and it blessed me so much! I'm so glad that you've stayed covered by His grace by life's messy challenges! I just left your blog and I was so blessed by it!
    Have a wonderfully peaceful and joyful Thanksgiving!
    Blessings,
    ~Erin

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  15. Susan,
    Thank you for being a part of our family blessing! Give dad a hug for me today and tell him that I love him!
    Happy Thanksgiving!
    Lots of love and hugs!
    ~Erin

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  16. Amen, Joan!
    You are covered with His grace. It's so evident in you!
    Thanks for coming by and I pray the rest of your Thanksgiving is filled with joy and peace!
    xoxo,
    ~Erin

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  17. "...the stuff hope is made of" -- indeed! I'm so thankful for his grace.

    Thanks for your lovely post.

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  18. Hi Erin - I too am thankful for God's grace. It always stops me in my tracks and as much as I look for thankfulness I think i try to see God's grace in everything. God bless and have a very blessed and joyous thanksgiving.
    Tracy

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  19. Happy day of giving thanks! I love how sorrow and joy aren't a valley and a mountain, they're roads running parallel crisscrossing out lives. Is there anything deserving of thanks more than grace, what a blessing!

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  20. Shari,
    Thank you for stopping by His grace...it's so amazing!
    I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
    Blessings,
    ~Erin

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  21. Thank you, Tracy. I hope your Thanksgiving was spent surrounded by love and grace!
    Blessings,
    ~Erin

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  22. Beck,
    That was a very good nugget you just shared. I'm so thankful you stopped by and visited!
    I pray you had a wonderful Thanksgiving surrounded by loved ones!!!
    Hugs,
    ~Erin

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  23. What a beautiful message. Thank you!

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  24. Beautiful! I know about the other side of grace too. SO thankful for Him and all His grace and love!
    Blessings to you :)

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  25. Thank you, Christina!
    I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
    Blessings,
    ~Erin

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  26. Kristin,
    It's powerful, isn't it! It's glorious to walk in His grace!
    Blessings,
    ~Erin

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  27. You're so amazing Erin. Oh, and thanks for making me cry again. You're gifted with that!

    *Sniff*
    Sharon

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  28. erin, i hope this Thanksgiving brought you all the love and joy in the world. you certainly have shared beautiful lessons and stories with us along the way. stories of the grace of God, hope, and faith.
    i hope this week is treating you well!
    xoxoxox
    maria <3

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  29. What a beautiful post again Erin! If life was free of pain or struggles we wouldn't even appreciate the gifts that we get from our sweet Jesus! You are Full of Grace and I love you for it, I love VoiceBoks and of course God for bringing you and your blog to me! Have a blessed Birthday today~Love always, Lisa

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  30. Sharon,
    You are just the sweetest soul I know. You are a blessing to me!
    Hugs and a Kleenex!
    ~Erin

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  31. Maria,
    I had a wonderful Thanksgiving and I hope you did, as well.

    Blessings,
    ~Erin

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  32. Lisa,
    Your words mean so much to me. You continually bless me with your walk in faith and grace!! I'm so glad to be in your life!
    Hugs,
    ~Erin

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Thank you for giving us a little nugget of truth from your heart!

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