grace – Pilgrim with a Pen

Well, it’s New Year’s Eve!

Almost time to watch that ball drop and party like it’s…2023? 🎉🎉🎉

Oh, who am I kidding…it’s almost time to drink sparkling grape juice with my kids while my husband snores like a freight train on the living room couch. 😒😒😒😂😴😴😴😴

Got any resolutions yet???

I can already think of a couple myself.

As you already know, this is the traditional time people dedicate or rededicate themselves to positive change…in fact, “new year, new me” is a phrase often used around this time of year…

And whether your goal is saving money, losing weight, or just watching less TikToks 😂…let me just say, I hope you reach your goals this year. I hope your hard work pays off! ❤️💪

But……..do me a favor?

While you’re working hard to accomplish those goals, remember this:

Setting and reaching goals is great, but (spoiler alert⚠️)…it won’t make you a “new you.”

Shocking, I know. 🤯🤯🤯😱😱😱😱

It’s actually the same old you, just with a few new habits…

Buuuuut….there is one teeny weeny exception to the rule.

One choice, one change, one resolution that trumps the rest.

And it’s simple really:

The only way to become a “new you” is to be born…all over again.

😳😳😳😳😳😳

Sounds crazy, right?

In John 3:3-7, a man named Nicodemus certainly thought the same when Jesus first explained the divine concept to him:

But “Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ “

When we are born of water and the Spirit through belief and baptism, our old self dies and a new self is born…or as the scriptures so eloquently describe, it is the moment in which we begin to “…walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4)

It’s the ultimate definition of a “new you.”

And it’s the most important New Year’s resolution you could ever make.

If you are seeking a new life that only God can provide, there is NO better time to start than today!!! ⏰⏱️🕰️⏳⌚️⌛️🕛⏲️

And there is no better Sunday to start worshipping Him than tomorrow, January 1st.

If you need a Savior — only Jesus can save your soul…

And if you need a church, I can save you a seat. ❤️

Happiest of New Years to you all!! 🎉

Until next time…

– PWAP

It’s no secret…I’m not the world’s best cook.

In fact, if someone took a poll asking who in our family has started the most kitchen fires — hands down, the answer would be…ME!! 🙋‍♀️ 🔥🔥🔥

— Guilty as charged.

I don’t know what it is, but I have always been a little clumsy…a little accident-prone, especially when I’m trying to do more than one thing at a time.

I’m just not that great at multitasking, I guess. 🤷‍♀️

If you read my last post, Living the Meme, I’m sure you’re well aware of how I feel about multitasking in this crazy busy life…and sometimes we have so much going on, we have to put certain things on the “back burner” so-to-speak.

As I was cooking the breakfast for the kids this morning, I was feeling the pressure of multitasking once again — dipping and flipping the pancakes over on the griddle while simultaneously trying not to burn the eggs or start (yet another) fire with bacon grease on the stove. Add hollering at two rowdy kids on a Saturday morning to the mix and you’ve got yourself a recipe for disaster.

Most of the time, my husband and kids are gracious in regard to my culinary catastrophes.

If their eggs are a little burnt or their bacon extra crispy, they don’t give me too hard a time…mostly they’re just glad I was making them something to eat at all. 😂

It’s just like my mom always said — the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. 😂🤣

And metaphorically speaking, it’s sort of that way with God’s heart too.

You see, He’s given us the “recipe for life” in His “cookbook” — the Bible. 😉

But it’s up to us to gather the ingredients and actually whip it up — even if we’re the not the best chefs in town. It’s important we read and follow the recipe carefully, especially when we’re just starting out.

But as we’re cooking, sometimes we get distracted — whether it be by a phone call, text, knock on the door, or a couple of crazy kids wrestling each other on the couch.

And before you know it, something’s gone awry with the meal you were trying to prepare.

With all the different pots we have on the stove of life, it’s almost inevitable that one will boil over, stick to the pan, or start one of those fun-little grease fires…😳🫢🔥🙄

And that’s where grace comes in.

Like a fire-extinguisher for our souls, God’s grace is there to put out those fires that arise as we’re trying to follow His special recipe.

Even if the blaze is so big that it takes a fire engine to come put it out, God’s got the insurance policy to cover it!

But though grace may be offered free for all…it isn’t a “free-for-all.” Contrary to the beliefs of some, God’s grace is not an insurance policy that covers intentional sin when there is little or no effort on our part to prevent and/or contain the fire.

You have to reach out to that fire extinguisher in order for it to work and you have to be willing to call 911 for help!

Think about it.

Should we TRY to burn the food on purpose?? Should we TRY to intentionally start that kitchen fire???

Insurance won’t reimburse for a 5 alarm fire that was the result of a self-sabotaging act of arson.

And neither will God.

So, then does it make any sense that we should “sin that grace may abound?” God forbid! (Romans 6:2)

In fact, the Bible teaches, “If we deliberately go on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no further sacrifice for sins remains, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume all adversaries.” (Hebrews 10:26-27)

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The opposite is true as well…turning all the burners off and just “ordering take-out” is not part of God’s plan either.

Just like a family recipe handed down for generations, we should cherish God’s Word and its recipe for our lives. Why settle for a cheeseburger when you could have a home cooked meal??

Are we all going to become the next Rachael Ray or Emeril Legasse in the process?

No, but we have to be trying.

God expects us to follow His recipe to the best of our abilities.

I wonder if that’s why despite his flaws, the Bible refers to David as a man after God’s own heart. (I Samuel 13:14)

He was a cheater and a murderer — talk about some big fires to put out. 😳😳😳🔥

But he repented — and he never stopped seeking God.

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I say all this to say….

Culinarily-speaking, if you’re like me and you’re accident prone in the kitchen — then you’re gonna want a fire extinguisher close by when you’re cooking. 🤣

But spiritually-speaking, if you’re a person who like me who is “sin-prone”…then you’re gonna want to keep Jesus close by. ❤️

Only His precious sacrifice can provide us with the grace we need to keep on cooking…

…and one-day land that 5 star review from the most important critic of all time, God Himself.

Until next time…

-PWAP

Tag: grace

New Year, New Me!

If You Can’t Take The Heat, Get Out of the Kitchen