Extending Grace and Igniting Hope

[Anna]

According to Wes Mills, Phillip Yancey says that grace is the last god word because it’s the one word in English that has not been tainted or soiled. I agree with this statement in that the definition of grace has not changed. Grace has meant receiving that which we do not deserve and it still means that now. However, I do believe that the word grace has been abused and in many places the grace of God has been replaced with cheap grace. That is grace without sacrifice or without cost. Grace came to us at the greatest cost of Jesus’s life and we must not take that for granted.

There is a very hurting and hopeless world or as David Thoreau so eloquently said, “most people lead lives of quiet desperation.” The reason it is so quiet is because no one talks about what is really going on inside of their hearts and minds. The darkness and despair is stuffed down and hidden and I believe ignored for the most part. Grace and hope help to shed light into these peoples’ lives, giving reasons for being, guidance, and direction.

[Zach]

Yancey I am sure said grace is the last good word that is unsullied, because many still resonate with the need for it. I would probably disagree, but only in the sense that in certain circles grace has become a contentious word, much like Jude said it would be, where it is turned into licence. Yancey’s point is well taken though in that in its pure form, it resonates with all of us, and actually should be the last word on all issues. God’s grace should be the final word on all matters and all people.

There was a time when I would have resonated with the life of quiet desperation, one that not even performance driven Christianity was able to fix. Grace and hope go quite well together because in God’s grace hope abounds for a future, a life, and an experience that is beyond what I deserve or can create for myself.

[Juma]

The ice recue just said it all; the ice represents the world of sin and it’s entanglements, the rescuer represents disciples and the robe is the power of God extending to Christ Jesus the anchor point or source. Praise the Lord Jesus for His grace.

[Jaylen]

I believe that most people do live quiet lives of desperation. Especially non-Christians. I think people make exceptions for the emptiness they feel; either the fill that (God-Shaped) empty hope with a job, family, money, friends, hobbies, food, etc. and perhaps they seem to fill that hole for a while, but at the end of the day they still are all missing something. I believe that thing is GOD! All people are God’s children and there is an undeniable urge to get to know Him whether we accept that or not. So in this way, those who don’t know Christ are living in quiet desperation.