A New Address

But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God - not the result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life. Ephesians 2: 4-10 (NRSV)

Oyvind Aske lives in Ostfold, Norway. While on a trip to Lisbon years ago, Oyvind and his wife learned a friend at home had passed away. To remember her, they found a nearby church where they could sit and pray. Located at the top of a steep hill, the sanctuary's name was Igreja da Graca - Church of Grace.

As they left the building they noticed an airplane overhead, so his wife checked an app on her cellphone to see where the plane was coming from and where it was going. A blue circle on the display also told them where they were as it tracked the plane. According to the phone, their location was "Grace." Oyvind experienced this as a personal message from the Lord: Our new address is "grace."

Oyvind must admit that he very often takes the grace of God is given to us freely by the death and resurrection of Jesus. As Paul writes in Ephesians 2:12, before Jesus we had "no hope" and were "without God in the world." Now we have new life in Jesus Christ.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for Christ's sacrifice and the gift of grace. Help us to embrace this blessing and offer it to others, in Jesus' name. Amen.