With The Grace Of God, We Are Enough: Day 4

On the 4th day of Christmas, Christ gave me… Grace.

A few nights ago we went to a drive-thru live nativity put on by a local church.

At each “station” people in costume enacted the Christmas story.

It all was so beautiful!

But I couldn’t stop thinking about the angel.

“Gabriel” stood on a stool. In each hand he held two long sticks draped in flowing white cloth. He faced Mary, depicting the moment when he reveals her divine mission. And the whole time he raised his arms up & down, up & down, like angel’s wings.

Over & over.

And every time he raised his arms, he winced with the effort. Every. time. 

My kids said worriedly, “Look how tired he is! I feel bad for him!”

And so did I. How long had he been there? I saw the cars ahead & the many cars behind. I wanted to roll down my window & say, “It’s ok! You can rest! We don’t care!”

But he was not breaking character.

For some reason, this touched me. And days later, I am like, why? Why did it feel so meaningful?

Because despite the difficulty, despite his literal weakness, he knew it wasn’t about him. He had agreed to play this part, for hours in the cold, because he loved God. It was tiring. It was painful! But he clearly gave it all he had. His effort did not go unnoticed!

Some may say, “Couldn’t they have found a better angel? He is not strong enough for this. It is too hard for him.”

Some may say that… but not me. And not God.

I often feel far from who I want to be, & don’t we all? We can be so hard on ourselves! Someone will always be better than us! We will never be enough… right? 

Michelle Craig said:

“The good news of the gospel is that with the grace of God, we are enough. With Christ’s help, we can do all things… Because of our Savior’s atoning sacrifice, we can be made equal to the tasks that lie ahead”

There have been times I’ve told myself, “I am not strong enough for this. I can’t do it!” I cannot lift my arms one more time! But through Christ’s enabling power, His GRACE, I accomplish things I could NOT have otherwise.

With Him, I am enough.

With Him, I can play my part.

He sees our efforts.

He fills in the gaps.

He is the wind beneath our wings… our pretend angel’s wings. 😉✨