Thankful for Grace (Week 24)

I've had better weeks. I've had worse weeks. Bottom line is that I'm ready for this particular week to be over. Almost every day I woke up with a plan of how the day was going to go, and pretty much every day threw me some kind of curve ball. Life happens.

When I married Peter (on Monday it will be 13 years!), one of the phrases that he brought along with him was, "No worries." I love it. It sums up how I try to react when life doesn't play fair, or when everything seems to be going wrong. A customer service rep apologizes for putting me on hold - No Worries. I had to wait in a long line to check out - No Worries. Our food is taking a long time to arrive and the waiter is harried - No Worries. With two little words, people relax.

I've been working hard to learn how to extend grace to others - it doesn't come naturally for me - but sometimes it's harder to give grace to myself. Mistakes happen. This week, I realized that I had done something stupid and I haven't found a way to correct the mistake (yet). While beating myself up over it, I received a text message of grace and "no worries" from the woman I do work for. Grace is a beautiful gift. Share it liberally.

I'm thankful for reminders that I am not the sum of my mistakes. I am a work in progress, and I am blessed to have people in my life who offer ready grace and "no worries" encouragement.

What are YOU thankful for today?