Grace Like Rain

Read James 4:1-6

Fights and quarrels - nobody wants them but they often come anyway.  James 4 speaks about what causes these fights - it's what's inside us, the natural wants and desires, what we covet but can't have.  So we wrestle.  We wrestle because what we want, we don't always get.  And James tells us it's because of our wrong motives.

What God wants is for us to be humble, not insistent on our way, our wants.  Because when we are humble we realize His grace.  James 4:6 tells us "he gives us more grace."  When we realize the value of grace we recognize something new pouring over us that begins to change us from the inside out because what used to be our ways and our wants changes.  It changes to God's ways and God's wants. 

What James says next should cause us to pause and take notice.  Anytime the Bible says God opposes something we should take notice.  He says "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humbe."  When God's grace like rain pours over us we realize what a gift it is to receive God's grace.  Humbled we respond to begin living with His good and Godly motives and not wrong motives; humbed we respond by investing in our friendship with God instead of friendship with this world.  Humbled we respond to His gift of more grace.  Allow God's grace to pour over you this week like rain - remembering who we are and who He is so that we might not be among the fights and quarrels, but intead be among the peace makers as ambassadors for Jesus.