You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Although he was rich, he became poor for your sakes, so that you could become rich through his poverty. — 2 Corinthians 8:9
Last month, Barbara went on a 2-and-1/2-week trip to Europe with some fellow friends in her antique button circle. She had a great time, and the pictures and stories are wonderful.
However, in 36 years of marriage, that’s the longest we’ve ever been apart. My friends had an interesting reaction when they heard I’d be without her for so long: “How will you ever survive?” The sense was that, even with frozen pizzas, I would starve, and my shriveled corpse would be found on the sofa when she returned.
So, a very kind couple invited me over for dinner a couple of times, to stave off such a macabre scene.
The point of this tale: When they invited me, after saying thanks for their thoughtfulness, each time I found myself adding: “What can I bring?”
Here my friends offered me a gift and, instead of simply accepting it, I felt like I should give them something in return. Why? Because I wanted to show I appreciated their offer? Because it’s the polite thing to do and I wanted to appear civilized?
When a gift is given freely, without being asked for, why not just accept it with gratitude for the love and thoughtfulness? Otherwise, it’s not really a gift, but something we feel we need to repay in some fashion. Maybe just showing up for dinner, letting my friends feel good–deservedly so–about their hospitality and generosity, was the best expression of thankfulness I could bring.
And when the gift of grace is given us, it’s not really grace if we feel we need to repay it. Just receiving it joyfully, being overwhelmed with gratitude, is enough. It makes the giver happy. And we’re changed in the process. The bigger the grace, the bigger the change.