RESPONDING TO THE RHYTHMS OF GRACE

Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll RECOVER YOUR LIFE. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me — watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly – Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG)

Many are tired, worn out, and burned out on the dry, drab drudgery of humanism, secularism, and dead, dry religions. They are fatigued, frantic, frustrated, and feeling hollow and numb on the inside, ready to give up and quit on life! In place of our frenzied rush and busy-ness however, God offers us the RHYTHMS of GRACE – His divine tempo for our capricious lives. The real life is not so much about what we do or don’t do. It’s about Who is setting the pace of our lives and Who set before us the race we are engaged in.

The Lord Jesus calls us from the fakery of our frenzied religious lives, to let go, and let God. We let go not by giving up or simply walking away from it all, but by learning to lean on God’s grace. His age-long, but living invitation to let Him set the pace of our lives seems spot-on for our generation of weary souls. The Master gently but firmly beckons:
Come to me.
Get away with Me…
Recover your life
Learn how to take a REAL REST…
WALK with Me and WORK with Me – WATCH how I do it.
Learn the unforced RHYTHMS of GRACE…
Keep company with Me…learn to live freely and lightly – liberated and unencumbered!

The rhythms of grace guarantee a lifestyle of unbroken fellowship with Jesus. Our most basic and instinctive response to rhythm is MOVEMENT. The rhythms make us move. Different kinds of musical rhythms induce different kinds of movement. How we move – the speed, motion, and duration – is a response to the beats we are hearing. The rhythm of the music sets our pace.

So, you need to ponder and ask: Who is setting the rhythm for the pace of my life? The answer depends on who presently has access to your ears, mind and heart. People respond differently to dealing with the demands of life. While some swiftly submit to the push of stress, others wobble into lethargy, feeling so helpless they just stop moving altogether. Others still assume the escapist approach; they ignore challenges, hoping they will somehow disappear.

Somewhere between these extremes, there is a perfect pace – a divinely-ordained, custom-fit rhythm for your life’s course and the current leg of the race you are running. This is God’s rhythm of grace for your life, His perfect tempo. Our Father-God wants us to go the full distance of our life’s race (Hebrews 12:1). He delights for us to enjoy the race and finish well and strong with heads held high, a smile on our faces and arms lifted in triumphant celebration! Reaching that acme of fulfilment begins with keeping in tune and time with God’s perfect tempo for your life – the RHYTHMS of GRACE!