WHO YOU ARE, WHAT YOU HAVE, AND ALL YOU ACCOMPLISHED IS BECAUSE….?

SCRIPTURE:
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not 
without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them – yet not I, 
but the grace of God that was with me.” 
(1 Corinthians 15:10)

MEDITATION:
What exactly is the “grace of God”?
It is, 
“unmerited mercy (favor) that God gave to humanity by sending his Son, Jesus
Christ, to die on a cross, thus securing man's eternal salvation from sin”.
You know what that indicates?

It means that God is the One in control 
and He holds our life (now and eternally) in the palm of His hand.
Let us face one fact - we came into the world with nothing,
and we will leave it with nothing. 
We should never assume that man’s idea of success and God’s are the same.
 
Let’s say you have written a book, you are a clever manager and promoter, 
you are a talented artist, you are independently rich, 
or you have achieved fame and fortune. 
Without the gifts of intelligence, imagination, personality, and 
physical energy (which are all provided by God) where would you be?

Are we not born poor? 
Do we not die poor? 
And would we not be completely poor, without God’s infinite mercy and love? 
We came out of nothing, and if we are anything, 
it is because God is everything.

If for one brief instance, 
God withheld His power from us, we would cease to exist.
If He were to hold in check the breath of life for one moment, 
our physical existence would shrivel into nothingness.
If He were to withhold everything He has blessed us with, 
our souls would be whisked away into an endless eternity.

It is wrong for us to get the idea that all we are, 
and all we have accomplished, is a result of ‘ourselves’.
Sorry if this bruises any egos, 
but we are no more than God created us to be.
In other words, we are who we are, because God is who He is.

We’ve heard the term “poor in spirit”.
It doesn’t sound like a compliment, does it?
The fact is, it really is an asset.
Why? Because the ‘poor in spirit’ know their sinfulness, 
which means they know that their sins are against God Almighty,
which means they recognize and respect Him as their Creator.

But more than that, 
they are ready to confess their sins and strive to abandon them. 
Egotism, rationalization, blatant disobedience and denial 
are not their characteristics.
They know Who created them and they know Who has the power to redeem them.
They also know Who can take away the chains of sin and give them freedom.

ACTION:
Do you have 
a misguided opinion of where your talents, skills and gifts came from?
Do you think a little too highly of yourself?
Or, do you acknowledge that God’s grace 
has allowed you to be who you are, and accomplish all you have?
If so, do you spend time thanking Him for the blessings He has given You, 
how He is blessing you now, and how He will bless you in the future?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, I acknowledge that all I have and all I am is a result of 
what You have provided with Your Almighty hands. Forgive me when I tend 
to boast about my own accomplishments. Instead, teach me to always remember 
that I am nothing without Your grace and love. Remind me to quickly point to 
You whenever I receive praise or accolades from others. Father God, You have 
been so good to me and I want others to know that I give You the credit for 
everything. Through my actions and attitudes, help me to point others to 
Your Son, Jesus.”