EMBRACE THE GRACE OF NOW

|Being Fully Alive in the Present Moment|
During my teaching days, I looked forward to the occasional teacher-appreciation party, which involved FREE FOOD, comradery, and great door prizes.
“Door prizes” got their name because
a.) they get people in the door
b.) you get a chance to win just by entering the door
c.) they keep people from going out the door too early
d.) all of the above
(I don’t know the answer. I just made up the quiz.) The point is: to receive one of the door prizes, you had to be present to win.
God’s a lot like the parents who threw our after-school parties. He seems to appreciate our company. He loves to give us presents in the present moment, and you must be in the moment to receive them. You must embrace the grace of now. It’s the only way to be fully alive.
I need to confess at this point that I’m a fully alive wannabe. They say the best coaches are those who had to work to develop their skills. I’ve had to work on being present. Anyway, I’d rather be a wannabe than a know it all.
Being present for the moments of your life isn’t a hedonistic goal. Yes, it’s the only way to get maximum pleasure from living, and, as Saint Irenaeus said, “The glory of God is a human being fully alive.” Still, I think God wants us to be present in the present because that’s where God is. God is the God who called Himself “I am.” He didn’t say, “I was.” He didn’t say, “I will be.”
Theologically speaking, God is outside of time and has access to every moment. But He created us as time-bound creatures and meets us in the now.
When we’re in awe of God over His glorious sunsets, we’re in the now. When we seek forgiveness for our past, and God assures us we are loved, we can only feel that love if we’re with God in the now. When God calms our worries over tomorrow with His assurance that He’s always with us, we can only feel His presence in the moment, in the now.
If we look for God, if God is what we seek, we’ll begin to find our invisible God in others, in all of creation. We’ll find Him in a baby’s laugh, a sunset, even in an ordinary moment like this one.
In Him we live, and move, and have our being
We are layered in God, almost like a nesting doll. We are the temple of God’s Spirit, His dwelling place. At the same time, in Him we live, and move, and have our being. This moment, we are saturated in the Divine Presence, and it’s forever raining grace.
Have you heard the story of the twins in the womb? One says to the other, “I’ve been thinking lately … “
“What. What have you been thinking?”
“Oh, forget it. You’ll laugh.”
“No. I won’t. What is it?”
“I’ve been thinking … that there is a Mom.”
“A Mom. You’ve got to be kidding. Do you see a Mom?”
“I can’t prove a thing. But I believe there is a Mom. And someday we’ll see our Mom, face to face.”
Now, that’s a wise twin! In the Mom the twins lived, and moved, and had their being. You read this blog within the sacred presence of God. Stay awhile in this moment. Embrace the grace of now.
Today, be aware.
God’s Life floods your heart.
It’s always Raining Grace.