Happy Friday! I hope this week has brought you many reasons to celebrate God’s grace.

We all have felt like the prodigal son or his brother from Luke 15:11-29 at different points in our lives. Whether we have pursued our own will over God’s or have worked to please God only to expect more from him, we have all been (and still are) in great need of God’s grace.

While we can see God’s grace every day, and in everything in our lives, we can commonly see it observed most in these four areas:

1. Release:

God loves us enough to release us (see Luke 15:11-13) – God doesn’t want us to be robots, seeking him because we have to. He wants us to authentically seek his will and his grace, even if that means letting us fall.

2. Return:

Returning to God is the only option that makes sense (see Luke 15:17) – When we turn away from God and his will for us, we reach a point of desperation. Being restored through grace comes when we realize this and seek Him.

3. Repent:

Repentance is the catalyst of grace (see Luke 15:18-19) – When we know we’ve strayed away, we have to ask God to forgive us and ask for His help.

4. Receive:

Grace is received, not earned (see Luke 15:22-24) – Nothing we do can make God love us more or less than he does right now. All you have to do is ask for His grace and restoration, and it’s given as a free gift!

Just like the prodigal son, God will receive us each and every time we go to him, no matter what we’ve done. And each time, we can celebrate His love for us!

I’m excited to continue exploring how God’s grace leads us to the rich and satisfying life He promises. This weekend, I hope you’ll be able to join me in part three of our series The Sound of Grace, at Alive Church, where I’ll be talking about The Sound of Wringing out a Towel.

In Christ,

Jeff