HIS GRACE IS HEAVY

I'm once again joining the writers of Five Minute Friday, where we are given a theme word each Friday, and we write for just five minutes on that theme, unedited, and resist the urge to tidy it up. 

This week's theme is HEAVY.

Grace is heavy sometimes.  It really is.  So many times over the last year, I've felt the heavy weight of God's grace on my life.   In His grace, He's put some serious pressure on me to get me to process deep pain.   And His grace has been unlimited, but also unyielding.  

His grace has had to be heavy to get me to co-operate with what needs to be done, because He wants me free of those things I've carried, as a heavy weight, like shame and guilt and lies and fear.    Because in fear I have held back from the process, held back from His touch, so His grace sits heavy until I yield to it.  (I've chronicled that processing journey in my blog, starting here).  

His grace sat heavy on Jesus too, in that garden where He wrestled with the task  before Him.  In Gethsemane, which literally means oil press, the pressing and the crushing of Jesus started.   And He sweated drops of blood because of the pressure of grace - the heavy weight of God's grace to each of us, placed on Jesus, accepted by Jesus.  

He knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”   Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  Luke 22:41-44

God's unmerited favour to us - it was a heavy grace.  

Surely He took up our pain and bore our suffering,

yet we considered Him punished by God, stricken by Him, and afflicted.

But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities.........  Isa 53:4,5

So when His grace sits heavy on me, I know now, after many months of it, that it's the Father's heart of grace towards me.     And I remind myself to kneel under that heavy grace.   

Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.   For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand.   Ps 95:6,7

This is a song I often sing, and has me reaching for a tissue.   

Jesus Christ

You bled Your love, laid down Yourself

And gave me life

In naked shame You hung and You were lifted high

Here I lay in awe and wonder

I am afraid

For no one's ever sacrificed and loved me this way

So on my face I fall under Your heavy grace

Here I lay in awe and wonder