Core Scripture: “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)

Message: My alarm went off early Sunday morning at midnight.  It takes me a full hour to get ready for work and get out the door.  I move slow.  All the essentials are needed: coffee, quiet time, breakfast, etc.  I hate being rushed.  I lay there in bed for a few extra moments slipping in and out of consciousness.

Apparently I did this longer than expected.

It seemed like no more than a few minutes had passed.  I glanced at the alarm clock next to my lamp … 1:01 am.  I rubbed my eyes and did a double take.  Yep, still the same.  I desperately snagged my phone, confirming the time was correct.  HOW?  How did I snooze my alarm for an extra hour?

I had no way of contacting work to let them know I was going to be late.  No bosses phone numbers.  No protocol to follow online.  I mean, I could have looked up Amazon’s number, but time was wasting.  I skipped breakfast and my quiet time, poured my coffee in a to go thermos, and took off into the night, arriving half an hour late to work. 

Have you ever taken this walk of shame?  Everybody was already at their posts, dutifully cranking out packages to be delivered.  I am not sure if anyone noticed me, but it felt like the world was watching.  This was NOT me!  I am always on time!  I could have come up with an excuse, but I came clean. 

“Sorry, boss!” I began.  “I hit my alarm this morning but didn’t wake up!”

The words sounded lame even to me.  Car trouble, alarm not working, or anything else would have at least sounded more legit, but … that would have been a straight up lie.

“Hey, it is all good, man,” my boss replied.  “Head on over tooooo … how about H 23-26.”

Thank goodness!  Steven’s voice was forgiving.  I had a feeling this was not the first time this had happened to someone.  Especially on the 1:20 am shift!

My bin was overflowing with packages upon arrival.  The red light was flashing atop, sounding off an annoying loud BEEEEP, BEEEEP, BEEEEP that lets you and the entire world around you know that your bin is at risk.  Someone tried helping, setting a few packages on a nearby cart, but the mess was overwhelming.

“There you are, Clint!” Raymond greeted me.

“Dude, I am so sorry!” I greeted my friend.  “My alarm went off, but I snoozed it and didn’t get out of bed.”

There was no harshness in his tone as he responded.  Sweet grace was dripping from his lips like honey.

“It happens to us all, man.  Nobody can help it being overworked like this.” 

Although my guilt still lingered, it lessened.  I didn’t deserve the grace being shown to me, but I was getting it.  I gave my friend a fist bump and thanked him for having my back.  His authentic smile and wink let me know all was forgiven.  It spurred me on to get caught up. 

After five minutes of putting the oversized packages in their place, the beeping stopped.  FINALLY!  I moved swiftly up and down the aisles with a bit of a pep in my step, but the small letters and packages, “jiffies” as they call them, were now piling up.  Raymond, almost clean in his own bin next to mine, walked over.

“Hey, I got this one, Clint,” he instructed.  “You concentrate on the other one over there.  We can crank this out together.” 

I pounded fists with him again, taking a deep sigh of relief.  We caught up within a half hour, and by break time at 3:30 am, you wouldn’t have ever known I was behind in the first place.  Wiping sweat from my brow, Raymond and I walked to the break room for 15 minutes of bliss.  Time to simply sit down and recharge. 

I began to think about my situation that morning.  It could have turned out so much different!  What if my boss had reamed me for my tardiness?  What if Raymond had left me out to dry, ignoring my desperate need for help?  When you don’t deserve grace but you still receive it, it makes life all that much more sweeter.

Grace.  Such a powerful word!  Let’s park on that thought and bring up some scripture to help us better understand grace.  Translation: Clint is googling the word grace and seeing what www.openbibleinfo.com has to say.  There.  My secret is out!  Google is my best friend sometimes.

• “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)
  • It is okay to embrace grace.  We are all weak.  We all sin.  Cut yourself some slack and realize that the grace being shown to you may be undeserved but it is needed to get through life.  Go ahead and brag about where you fall short because it is there that the Lord’s power is seen.
• “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) 
  • Nothing I do can earn my way into heaven.  If I rely on my own power to do good works, somewhere along the way I will fall short.  I will NEED grace!  That grace, given to us freely through Jesus, is beyond precious.
• “For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.” (Romans 6:14)
  • Sin sucks.  It leads to death, and it separates me from God.  I can let that shame resonate in me when I fall short, or I can soak in the beauty of God’s grace.  Not sure about you, but I choose the latter. 

Let’s apply this to education.  There is no doubt that grace is needed on both sides.  Teachers need to give grace to others, but at the same time they must embrace grace when they fall short.  Here are some thoughts to ponder about grace as we are all sure to be dealing with the need for it.

1. Grace is needed this time of year.  We are approaching that stressful time of year that makes us a bit edgy.  Thanksgiving through Christmas provides a plethora of opportunities to worry about finances, family visits, cooking the perfect meal, buying the perfect gifts, traveling timely, and just surviving the busyness of life.  What a wonderful opportunity for Christians to give and receive grace!
2. Take the 10,000 foot view.  When conflict comes, try to take an out of body experience.  Hoover over your problem with someone else, seeing not only them but you as well.  Are there any faults in you that contributed to the conflict?  What might be affecting the other person?  Do you need to apologize for anything?  Being humble is not easy, but it is needed.
3. Don’t be so hard on yourself.  Satan will attack you with guilt and shame if you are not careful.  Face it … we are ALL sinners (Romans 3:23).  We all screw up.  Don’t believe the Devil’s lies.  Know that grace through Jesus is 100 percent free of charge, and He extends it because He loves you that much!
4. God wants us to forgive.  How powerful are those moments of forgiveness in our lives?  Telling a student, “I forgive you,” may mean the world to them if they miss the mark.  I will never forget allowing encouragement to fill one of my former students on the last day I taught.  She was being too hard on herself, and I gave her permission to forgive herself for not being perfect in her grammar. 
5. Lean on love. The power of love is seen in 1 Corinthians 13.  Read that chapter.  Meditate on it.  Ask yourself the following questions: How can I show the love Christ showed me to others?  Is there any bitterness inside me that needs to be washed clean with love?  Put to memory the way Paul ends this passage in 1 Corinthians 13:13 when he says, “Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.”

Faith … Hope … Love.  The greatest of them is LOVE!  When that student comes in tardy for the umpteenth time, be loving in tone.  When your boss fails to recognize you for your hard work, know that God still loves you.  When your lesson bombs and the entire class rebels, extend love.

I remember numerous times through the years when the grace I showed my students was God ordained.  I would say things like, “I behaved the same way back when I was in middle school.”  I would share stories of when I fell short.  Like the time I got caught eating a donut from the donut box and lying about it afterwards.  We all had those moments!

Don’t excuse them.  If there is any consequence that needs to take place, allow it to happen.  When one of my students was caught cheating years ago, his plea was tear-filled and desperate: “PLEASE don’t call my mom!”  I reassured him that I would have to call his mom but that I would still show love.  My conversation went like this …

“Hello, Mrs. (so and so), this is Clint Daniels, your son’s English teacher.  I wanted you to know that he is off to a great start this quarter.  His grade is right at 93 percent, and he has all his work turned in.  I wonder, however, if the pressure of keeping his A is getting to him because he confessed to me that he cheated on the last quiz.”

How do you think his mom took that?  Pretty well actually.  The blow was softened simply by my tone and the way I began the conversation in a positive manner.  Once mom felt pride that her son was performing well, the blow of the cheating confession was lessened a bit.  All because I allowed grace to prevail.

Paul’s words are so profound in Ephesians 4:32. We could react in anger or frustration to those who wrong us, but Paul says, “Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”  Key application here … Don’t miss the reason we show grace. 

We show grace because Jesus has already shown grace towards us.  He didn’t want to go to the cross, but He did.  Every time we allow grace to prevail over bitterness or hate or anything else that brings us down, we are displaying the depths of the love that Jesus shows us. 

Embrace grace.  Not just from being wronged by someone else but also when you are the culprit.  I cannot think of a gift more needed.  Sometimes the greatest gifts come not out of your wallet but through your actions.

Challenge: Look for opportunities to embrace grace this week.  From both sides.  And if you have fallen short in this area and need to humble yourself, guess what?  It is never too late to apologize.

Bible study: Read John 8:1-10.  Journal about or discuss the following questions …

• Why do you think the Pharisees brought the woman caught in adultery to Jesus?
• How did Jesus respond?
• How does the law of the Old Testament get trumped by Jesus and what His message is?
• When you accuse someone of sin, have you ever realized you commit the same sin?
• How should we deal with hypocrisy?
• Who is God telling you to show grace to this week?

Song application: “Your Grace is Enough” by Chris Tomlin

Great is Your faithfulness, o God
You wrestle with the sinner’s heart
You lead us by still waters and to mercy
And nothing can keep us apart

So remember Your people
Remember Your children
Remember Your promise, o God

Your grace is enough
Your grace is enough
Your grace is enough for me

Just for fun: Anyone familiar with Key and Peele?  Yeah, I know that some of their stuff is a bit over the top, but I was reminded of one of their epic episodes when a new hire was referred to as “Ay-Ayron.”  If you have never seen “Substitute Teacher,” I dare you not to laugh at this sketch.

No offense, Mr. Garvey, but you need to read my words of advice above about grace. 

Prayer: Lord, Your grace is so precious!  Thank you for still loving me when I fall short.  Help me display that same action to others.  Amen.