1
00:00:02,680 --> 00:00:03,480
Speaker 1: Life Audio.

2
00:00:10,920 --> 00:00:14,840
Speaker 2: Welcome to the Crossbalk devotional. We're glad to have you listening.

3
00:00:15,520 --> 00:00:20,400
Speaker 2: Today's topic is about God's abundant grace. We'll return with

4
00:00:20,480 --> 00:00:35,880
Speaker 2: the devotional after a brief message from one of our sponsors.

5
00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:42,519
Speaker 2: Grace in Abundance is available, written and read by Emily

6
00:00:42,720 --> 00:00:48,400
Speaker 2: Rose Massey. But He gives more grace. Therefore, it says

7
00:00:48,600 --> 00:00:54,880
Speaker 2: God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble James,

8
00:00:54,960 --> 00:01:00,279
Speaker 2: Chapter four, verse six. One of my closest friends been

9
00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:04,200
Speaker 2: walking through a very heavy time regarding her husband's diagnosis

10
00:01:04,240 --> 00:01:08,080
Speaker 2: of MS. There are times when she opens up to

11
00:01:08,120 --> 00:01:11,839
Speaker 2: me about her struggles with how it has impacted her marriage,

12
00:01:12,319 --> 00:01:14,640
Speaker 2: and all I want to do is encourage her and

13
00:01:14,760 --> 00:01:19,440
Speaker 2: help her carry the burden. The other day, I listened

14
00:01:19,560 --> 00:01:23,120
Speaker 2: as she sobbed, and I tried my best to acknowledge

15
00:01:23,160 --> 00:01:26,839
Speaker 2: the difficulty and pain, even if I couldn't fully relate

16
00:01:26,920 --> 00:01:32,479
Speaker 2: to this particular situation. To encourage her, I told her

17
00:01:32,800 --> 00:01:36,760
Speaker 2: that in her repentance of complaining and repentance of discontentment,

18
00:01:37,120 --> 00:01:40,320
Speaker 2: in the midst of her suffering, I see so much

19
00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:44,440
Speaker 2: beautiful humility, and a greater trust is being formed in

20
00:01:44,560 --> 00:01:49,880
Speaker 2: her because of that humility, we can rejoice in knowing

21
00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:53,960
Speaker 2: that God has promised to give grace to the humble,

22
00:01:55,480 --> 00:02:00,640
Speaker 2: but he gives more grace. Therefore, it says God opposes

23
00:02:00,680 --> 00:02:05,240
Speaker 2: the proud, but gives grace to the humble. James, Chapter four,

24
00:02:05,360 --> 00:02:11,560
Speaker 2: verse six, intersecting faith in life. Some of us have

25
00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:15,680
Speaker 2: been called to a greater measure of suffering than others,

26
00:02:15,720 --> 00:02:18,960
Speaker 2: and instead of allowing the trial to embitter us or

27
00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:23,040
Speaker 2: cause us to be anxious, we can be thankful that

28
00:02:23,080 --> 00:02:27,160
Speaker 2: we will be recipients of God's great sustaining grace and

29
00:02:27,280 --> 00:02:32,760
Speaker 2: a greater measure than others. Yet to receive that sustaining grace,

30
00:02:33,320 --> 00:02:36,600
Speaker 2: we must remember to come to God humbly as we

31
00:02:36,720 --> 00:02:40,280
Speaker 2: learn to lean upon Him for strength and trust that

32
00:02:40,360 --> 00:02:45,400
Speaker 2: He is using suffering for a purpose. Pain and suffering

33
00:02:45,440 --> 00:02:49,000
Speaker 2: are not something any of us look forward to, but

34
00:02:49,160 --> 00:02:52,040
Speaker 2: while we live here in this fallen and broken world,

35
00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:56,760
Speaker 2: it is inevitable. It is so easy to get caught

36
00:02:56,840 --> 00:02:59,280
Speaker 2: up in the storms of our life and lose sight

37
00:02:59,320 --> 00:03:01,760
Speaker 2: of the whope that is available to us through Jesus

38
00:03:01,880 --> 00:03:07,160
Speaker 2: Christ and allow them to overtake us. Our trials are

39
00:03:07,240 --> 00:03:09,880
Speaker 2: what the Lord is using to bring us closer to

40
00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:14,680
Speaker 2: him and conform us into his image. The apostle Paul

41
00:03:15,040 --> 00:03:20,079
Speaker 2: calls this the fellowship of his suffering Philippians, Chapter three,

42
00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:24,760
Speaker 2: verse ten. Not only do our trials bring us closer

43
00:03:24,800 --> 00:03:28,280
Speaker 2: to Christ, but they remind us that Heaven is our

44
00:03:28,320 --> 00:03:33,920
Speaker 2: true home, and one day our suffering will cease. The

45
00:03:33,960 --> 00:03:37,040
Speaker 2: suffering may not disappear in this life, but the good

46
00:03:37,120 --> 00:03:40,600
Speaker 2: news is that Jesus is right there with us to

47
00:03:40,760 --> 00:03:44,760
Speaker 2: walk through it together, and he has promised to empower

48
00:03:44,840 --> 00:03:48,480
Speaker 2: us with his grace in the midst of the pain.

49
00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:51,800
Speaker 2: The temptation is to give all of our focus to

50
00:03:51,880 --> 00:03:55,160
Speaker 2: the battle we may be facing and figure out ways

51
00:03:55,800 --> 00:03:59,280
Speaker 2: on either how to escape it or fix it. But

52
00:03:59,360 --> 00:04:02,200
Speaker 2: the Lord is calling us to run to Him and

53
00:04:02,280 --> 00:04:06,560
Speaker 2: our weakness as we realize we cannot walk through any

54
00:04:06,600 --> 00:04:10,080
Speaker 2: of it on our own. Let us run to Him

55
00:04:10,560 --> 00:04:14,800
Speaker 2: and fall at his feet and humility, knowing that his

56
00:04:15,000 --> 00:04:20,039
Speaker 2: strength is made perfect in our weakness. God's grace is

57
00:04:20,080 --> 00:04:23,679
Speaker 2: sufficient and he is our ever present help in times

58
00:04:23,720 --> 00:04:27,640
Speaker 2: of need. But sometimes our actions do not reflect these truths.

59
00:04:28,760 --> 00:04:33,640
Speaker 2: It's much easier for us to either complain about our stressful, painful,

60
00:04:33,680 --> 00:04:37,280
Speaker 2: and difficult circumstances or try to take matters in our

61
00:04:37,320 --> 00:04:39,920
Speaker 2: own hands to try to fix it or change what

62
00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:43,800
Speaker 2: seems to be causing us to feel so overwhelmed. What

63
00:04:44,000 --> 00:04:47,039
Speaker 2: are you walking through right now that seems to be

64
00:04:47,200 --> 00:04:52,599
Speaker 2: overwhelming or stressful. Grace and abundance is available to those

65
00:04:52,640 --> 00:04:56,560
Speaker 2: who ask. We must learn how to ask for grace

66
00:04:56,640 --> 00:04:59,600
Speaker 2: when we have reached our limit or when we feel

67
00:04:59,800 --> 00:05:03,000
Speaker 2: like we're being crushed under the weight of our suffering.

68
00:05:04,120 --> 00:05:08,200
Speaker 2: God is so faithful to provide all things that we

69
00:05:08,320 --> 00:05:12,400
Speaker 2: need because he is a gracious father who cares deeply

70
00:05:12,560 --> 00:05:16,440
Speaker 2: for his children. Come to him as his child today,

71
00:05:17,279 --> 00:05:22,279
Speaker 2: boldly and humbly, asking for his sustaining and powerful grace

72
00:05:22,440 --> 00:05:26,960
Speaker 2: to carry you through each challenging moment. Even if this

73
00:05:27,080 --> 00:05:31,000
Speaker 2: season of suffering doesn't have an expiration date. On this

74
00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:34,760
Speaker 2: side of eternity, we can run to our Father and

75
00:05:34,920 --> 00:05:39,160
Speaker 2: ask for his sustaining grace that is more than enough.

76
00:05:40,760 --> 00:05:46,720
Speaker 2: Further reading Two Corinthians chapter twelve, eight through nine, Hebrews

77
00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:48,800
Speaker 2: chapter four, verse sixteen.

78
00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:56,560
Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to today's devotional. If you liked what

79
00:05:56,600 --> 00:05:58,599
Speaker 1: you heard today, we want to make sure you know

80
00:05:58,680 --> 00:06:02,640
Speaker 1: about our sister podcast your daily Prayer. When you follow

81
00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:06,040
Speaker 1: your daily prayer in your favorite podcast app. You'll get

82
00:06:06,080 --> 00:06:09,160
Speaker 1: a brand new prayer and devotional each day, so your

83
00:06:09,240 --> 00:06:12,839
Speaker 1: days begin in conversation with God. If you're looking to

84
00:06:12,920 --> 00:06:15,640
Speaker 1: grow in prayer or start your day with your heart

85
00:06:15,720 --> 00:06:19,840
Speaker 1: focused on the right things, search for your daily prayer

86
00:06:20,080 --> 00:06:23,040
Speaker 1: in your favorite podcast app and be sure to follow

87
00:06:23,080 --> 00:06:25,960
Speaker 1: the show so you get a new prayer delivered straight

88
00:06:26,040 --> 00:06:27,480
Speaker 1: to you each morning.