Grace upon Grace

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) And from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known. John 1:14-18

After a long day and a half of rain, the sun has finally shone itself and the sky is crystal blue. The early morning light filters through winter draped windows urging all of us to see the light that is breaking forth. Sometimes there are dark days. Sometimes there are hard and cruel hearts, people who chose to hurt others rather than to seek their own healing. But with the dawning of this day, we can all remember that we are given grace upon grace, no matter how high the water rises or how complicated and frustrating the times.

John writes to tell the same story in a different way. John has a different way of thinking and being, a mystic and a poet. His writing tells of dreams and visions, of images and poetry that draws us to the heart of God. From a distance of age and years, the writer tells us of the emerging Christ, the one who actively came into the world and took on our flesh and our lives so that we might know God intimately, as children know a loving parent. We are invited by John to see ourselves as emerging from our past to the present truth of God with us, within us and around us.

Today, I ask that God help me to know grace upon grace, even in the midst of radical change and tremendous obstacle. May my focus not be on the tasks ahead but on the relationships that re given - grace upon grace, not upon my own struggles but what lies ahead - the emergent, renewed life. May we all seek grace upon grace today as we offer these times to God emergence in our lives, bringing healing and grace to all.