Why I feel like the most blessed man on the planet (almost).

I took a five year old for a ride round the block on the back of my Harley the other day.

He pretty much thought it was the best thing that had ever happened to him.

Afterwards his dad said to me "Well now you've made the top of his prayer list! And when he prays, he doesn't stop!"

How awesome is that! I now have the faithful, undoubting, unceasing prayers of a child behind me! I am so blessed.

The only way I could feel any more blessed right now is if I learnt to pray like him again.

Mark 10:15
"I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child well never enter it."

Mark 11:23-24
"I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have recieved it, and it will be yours."

What's poo got to do with grace?

I work as a carer. I was in the toilet changing one of the guys with a fairly high level of cerebral palsy the other day. How can I put this tastefully, it was quite... messy, however he knows me and he knows that not much gets to me, so we were having a bit of a laugh and keeping it light hearted. During the shannanigans I said something like
"Well at least they won’t have to change you at home now!", and his whole mood changed. He looked like the weight of the world had just been put on his shoulders.
"Hard...", he replied with a sad face.
After a bit of coaxing I got out of him that he hates being changed at home because he gets the impression that the carers there really don’t like doing it. He feels really bad, he feels like he’s done something wrong if he needs to be changed.
"Dude," I said "one of the reasons they’re there is cos they know that you’re gonna need a change every now and then. They’re carers. They are not there to enjoy themselves, they are there, being paid money, to do what ever you need them to do, including cleaning up your poo. If you weren’t expected to need help you wouldn’t have been given carers."
But he still didn’t buy it, and it frustrated me.
"Hard..." he said again.
I prayed that he would just learn to accept the provisions he has been given.

And then I thought "hold on a sec, is God tryna tell me something here?"
How many times have I sinned and thought to myself
"Oh man, that was dumb! Why did I do that, I so should have known better! God must be so dissapointed with me! I am so weak! I’m so ashamed to asked Him for forgiveness AGAIN! After I have told Him time and time again that I’m truly sorry! I’m a liar – I’m abusing His forgiveness! I am so not worthy to be called His follower!"
But that’s the whole reason Jesus let Himslf be murdered as a punishment for everything we will ever do wrong. He knew we would screw up. It doesn’t come as a surprise to Him, - if Jesus thought we were never gonna screw up or that we were capable of overcoming sin ourselves, He wouldn’t have taken the punishment for the sins we were going to commit, would He?

So my advice to myself and anyone else who cares to read:
Stop beating yourself up over your sinful nature. Instead spend your energy being grateful to God for His awesome, phenomenal, powerful, perfect grace. For knowing that we are a bunch of screw ups and making provisions for that because He loves us. For taking away the burden of living up to any expectations, and placing that burden onto Jesus Christ’s beautiful shoulders.

2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)
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 about my weakness, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.