Ephesians 2:8-9 – Grits with Grace

communication, life, Scripture, Trials, wisdom

Call the Plumber

Posted on June 30, 2025June 16, 2025 by Dewayne Taylor

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

I knew it, I just knew it. A while back, my wife told me that she had dropped her special eye liner down the drain in our bathroom. It was the kind that was encased in a holder like a pencil and one day the eye thingy just slid right out. Now, I’m not sure what an eye liner even does but I know it was important to her. And, since it was important to her, it was important to me.

With my limited, and I do mean limited, knowledge of plumbing and drains, I did know that there is a thing called a trap on a drain. It is designed to catch things and keep them from going wherever the water goes…the place of no return. I also knew checking the trap was not a big deal. You unscrew a couple of things and when you are done you screw it back on. No deal, right? Uh, well, usually.

Well, I took it off and dumped it out. There was some really, ugly stuff in there but none of it had to do with eyes. So after cleaning it out I screwed it back on and checked to make sure everything was nice and dry. It wasn’t. One of the joints was leaking. I took it apart 3,291 times and 3,291 times it leaked. I finally called it quits and asked my real plumber son-in-law to swing by and check it out. The diagnosis was simple.

The problem was a cheaply made part from China that was apparently, barely staying together before the eye-liner thing. The answer was to buy a new part, screw it on and bam—you are back in business. So, I go to store number one and buy the part the guy says I need. I bring it home, take it apart, wrong part. Bummer. So, I went to another store and bought another part that the guy said I needed. I brought it home, I took it apart and indeed, it was the WRONG part.

If nothing else, I am persistent. I went to a third store where the nice guy behind the counter sold me a whole bag of parts at a very good price. “Yay!” I said. I went home, opened my big bag of parts, and discovered indeed that it would fix a problem, for someone, somewhere—but not my problem. They didn’t fit either. I gave up and went on vacation.

Sometimes a trip to Florida with family will give renewed clarity and determination. When I got home, I decided if I just tried harder, if I just adjusted and twisted enough, I could make one of all those parts work. Well, I got on the floor, dumped all the parts on the floor and took it all part again and…failed. Miserably. In fact, instead of one leak I now had two. By now I was certain of two things. I was not a plumber, and I was very glad God called me to be a preacher.

Well, I decided to give it one more try. This time I took the old broken parts with me to the store. Store one and two were closed but store three was open. I walked in and the nice guy said, “Can I help you?” I told him I honestly wasn’t sure. I gave him the short story of how I now owned a small plumbing supply business and I needed this part—and I showed him the dirty, slimy old part. He reached down and pulled a bag full of parts off the shelf and together we looked. There, inside the bag, was the part I needed. He saw it, I saw it. Things were looking up.

I bought the bag of parts and took them home. I managed to rig the other leak with some electrical tape—hey it worked—and then I put on the new part, the right part. It took exactly one minute to screw on the right part and ta-da—it didn’t leak. Success. Victory. I was one happy shade-tree plumber. Of course, I now own two bags full of parts that I don’t need—yet—and probably spent enough to pay a plumber to fix it but it was done, and I was the hero! I’m going down today to apply for my plumber’s card.

I bet you are wondering what today’s big truth is all about? We could talk about frustration. We could talk about determination. We could talk about some other word that ends with “ion.” But the big truth is this. I kept trying to put the wrong part in the right place and no matter how hard I tried—it just wasn’t going to fit. It was like trying to put a square peg in a round hole—it wasn’t gonna happen.

Of course, we do this all the time in life with God. How many times do we have an issue or a problem and we are sure we can cram something into that place that doesn’t fit and be happy? How many new cars, houses and televisions have been bought trying to scratch an itch that only God can scratch? Sometimes we just know if we “get religion” or start going to church, or start this or stop that, everything will be ok. Our life, our marriages, our fears will all be better or disappear. Those may be good things, but they are not THE thing.

The thing is a personal relationship with Jesus. You may have heard how He came to bring light into a dark world—including your dark world. You may have even heard how He came to set things right between you and God—in fact, make it possible for you to call God Father. It’s all true and it’s all right there in the Book. Paul, one of the guys who wrote a chunk of the New Testament, said “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” That just means we are saved by believing and not doing. It’s really quite amazing.

So, if you have a plumbing problem…save yourself some time and frustration and call your son-in-law the plumber. If he isn’t one, hire one. But if your life is a leaky mess, call on Jesus. No matter the problem, no matter how big the problem—He is the fixer. He can take care of it and you. Why? Because He loves you—a lot. You can rest in Him when life wears you down. You can turn to Him when life gets crazy because…He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne

Family, forgiveness, Grace, gratitude, life, love, prayer, priorities, Scripture, sovereignty of God, thankful, Trials

Call the Plumber

Posted on June 15, 2023June 8, 2023 by Dewayne Taylor

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

Well, I took it off and dumped it out. There was some really ugly stuff in there but none of it had to do with eyes. So, after cleaning it out I screwed it back on and checked to make sure everything was nice and dry. It wasn’t. One of the joints was leaking. I took it apart 3,291 times and 3,291 times it leaked. I finally called it quits and asked my real plumber son-in-law to swing by and check it out. The diagnosis was simple.

Well, I decided to give it one more try. This time I took the old broken parts with me to the store. Store one and two were closed but store three was open. I walked in and the nice guy said, “Can I help you?” I told him I honestly wasn’t sure. I gave him the short story of how I now owned a small plumbing supply business, and I needed this part—and I showed him the dirty, slimy old part. He reached down and pulled a bag full of parts off the shelf and together we looked. There, inside the bag, was the part I needed. He saw it, I saw it. Things were looking up.

Of course, we do this all the time in life with God. How many times do we have an issue, or a problem and we are sure we can cram something into that place that doesn’t fit and be happy? How many new cars, houses and televisions have been bought trying to scratch an itch that only God can scratch? Sometimes we just know if we “get religion” or start going to church, or start this or stop that, everything will be ok. Our life, our marriages, our fears will all be better or disappear. Those may be good things, but they are not THE thing.

Family, food, forgiveness, Grace, gratitude, life, Scripture, thankful, Trials

Simply Nonstick

Posted on October 17, 2022October 16, 2022 by Dewayne Taylor

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

Slip sliding away. Now let’s be honest and let’s be clear. I don’t have a clue about cooking, but I do know just a little about frying pans. Back in the old days when it came to frying pans it was cast iron or nothing and cast iron had and has its place. But some years ago, they started making frying pans that food stuff wouldn’t stick too. Well about seven or eight years ago we bought a pricy set of pots that were supposed to be stick proof and I guess for the first few years they were. Then, slowly, and as sure as a slug on a sidewalk, it stopped being non-stick.

Now my experience with frying pans is limited to frying, or maybe it is just cooking in a frying pan, eggbeaters for my breakfast and if you weren’t careful you ended up with a sticky mess. Sometimes there was more egg left in the pan than there was on my plate. Finally…my wife Judy said enough. She went to the Walmart store and bought one of those pans you see advertised on television. The ad said that “nothing would stick”. It showed eggs, burnt butter and cheese, you name it and with just a tilt of the pan—off it would go. Turns out that was not exactly true. I told her she should take the thing back, but she said it was too late.

Well, out of frustration I decided to try something. I sprayed the pan with some Pam…it’s like cooking oil in a spray can – I think. After spraying the pan, I poured some eggbeaters in and just like that – problem solved. Those eggs—or eggbeaters—were sliding all over the pan just like the commercial. It turns out all that the pan needed was a little help. The bottom line is it is good to have a pan that doesn’t try and keep my eggs.

You know that made me think. That pan and the spray stuff is a whole like God’s grace and our faith. Imagine with me that the pan is the grace of God. Grace simply means God’s unmerited favor. Now imagine that the spray on stuff is like faith. Faith is when we believe something that we can’t see, touch, or feel. Put the two together and you have a combination that simply will not allow sin to stick and that is good news. Just like the eggbeaters slid right out that pan, so sin is forgiven and won’t stick around to condemn us. Grace and faith—what a wonderful combination.

Paul, the guy in the Bible who wrote a lot of the New Testament said this, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” “By grace through faith,” put the two together and your sin just won’t stick to your account. Gone. Forgiven. Banished. And just like the eggs, or eggbeaters, have little or nothing to do with their time in the pan so when it comes to God’s forgiveness that is true too. All we do is believe…everything else is on God. Oh, and just like the commercial…no sin and I mean no sin, is going to stick—no matter how big or bad. His grace is sufficient for the job. You gotta love it.

So, if the next time you are frying something, and it sticks to the pan—just head to the store and get you one of those fancy new ones. Oh, and don’t forget the Pam. And the next time you get into deep weeds with your sin, just remember this story and step into God’s grace and your faith…it is a winning combo. No matter how big the mess…His grace is enough. All you need to do is ask for His forgiveness and I can already tell you His reply—I’ve got this.” Bro. Dewayne

Family, fear, friends, gratitude, life, loving others, Scripture, Southern born, sovereignty of God, thankful

Settled

Posted on August 4, 2022July 23, 2022 by Dewayne Taylor

Hi Grits Family! My wife Judy and I are going to be “out of pocket” aka “not available” to write for the next couple of weeks. During that time, we decided to send out some of our past stories. I hope you enjoy the ones we selected and look forward to some “fresh Grits” in a couple of weeks. God bless. Bro. Dewayne

For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

Well, the issue is finally settled. It is really a difficult thing to be the baby of the family especially when it is obvious that after seven previous tries mom and dad finally got it right. Yup…that was me. Number eight in a litter of eight. Sometimes, because I was the baby of eight, my other brothers and sisters got a little jealous.

One of the stories that I was raised with was the fact that I really wasn’t a natural born part of the family. In fact, they told me that mama and daddy had found me in a ditch in the poor part of town and felt sorry for me and brought me home. Now I understand how that story got started. I mean I was so much cuter and smarter than my brothers and sisters it seemed pretty apparent that I was an outsider. Yup, they would rag on me big time, but it didn’t bother me. I knew I was special.

I grew up and the story about me being “found” kind of faded away. I knew it was all a joke, but every once in a while, it gives me pause. Hmmm, what if, I wonder, could it be? Naw…I was pretty sure; it was not true. As time passed and technology grew, someone started a company that would allow you to check your DNA. The results would tell you where you were from and where your ancestors lived. One of my older brothers decided to spend the money and have his checked. The results were lack luster.

I always envisioned being related to William Wallace or some other great hero. But when his results came in it turned out that we were 83% plain ole Englishmen. Yup…right there in Northern Europe. I guess my ancestors got mad at the king or queen and took a ship to America. His results did show that we were 17% Scott Irish which meant there was about a one in five chance that I had an Irish brogue hidden somewhere in me. However, it wasn’t enough for me to go buy a kilt!

But then I thought, “Well, those are his results but are they, my results?” I mean if the “we found you in a ditch story” was true then his story couldn’t be mine. So, guess what? For Father’s Day, Judy spent the money, and I was able to spit in a tube and send my DNA off in the mail. It took several weeks but guess what? Yup, you guessed it. My results were exactly-the same as my brothers. What that really means is that we had the same father and mother, and I was the best looking and smartest because mom and dad finally got it right. Smile.

I’m just pulling your leg. I knew I was part of the family, there is a whole lot of family resemblance in me. I also knew that old story was just a joke, but I always enjoyed playing along. It made me feel kinda…special. As you have heard before…my brothers and sisters called me “precious”—mainly because I was. Smile. But I want you to know that you are special too. We all are. We are all wonderful creations of God. Like someone said, “God doesn’t make junk.”

I was born into the Taylor clan by an act of God’s grace. Period. I could have been born anywhere or at any time, but by His grace I was born to Alston and Leslie back in 1954. That wasn’t the only time I experienced His grace. I was born another time too, back on October 26, 1976. That was the day I was born again and adopted into the family of God. You see, each person who trusts Christ is in the family by a new birth (that’s where we get our spiritual DNA) but also by the power of adoption (that’s where we get all the rights and privileges of a full-grown son.). From the moment I believed in Jesus, I had all the rights of a person who has known Jesus for decades. Amazing.

So, I’m a Taylor down to my core…my DNA proves it. But I am also a “tailor-made” (I couldn’t resist) child of God. Born again by His grace and adopted into the family as His son. There is no higher privilege than that. And it is an open invitation. God invites each and every person into the family if they are willing to believe and trust in His Son. It is all a matter of faith and His grace. His Book says, “For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast.”

I know I use that verse often, but it just never grows old. I am a child of God, and He is my Dearest Daddy. Not because of who I am, but because of His love for me and His amazing grace. How about that?

If you should ever wonder who you really belong to, can I make a suggestion? Why not settle the issue and become a child of His? You will never wander or wonder again. He’s just waiting for you to come to Him and rest. He wants you to know He’s got this, for now and for all eternity. Bro. Dewayne

Family, forgiveness, Grace, gratitude, life, love, prayer, Scripture, thankful

Call the Plumber

Posted on August 17, 2021August 16, 2021 by Dewayne Taylor

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

Well, I decided to give it one more try. This time I took the old broken parts with me to the store. Store one and two were closed, but store three was open. I walked in and the nice guy said, “Can I help you?” I told him I honestly wasn’t sure. I gave him the short story of how I now owned a small plumbing supply business, and I needed this part—and I showed him the dirty, slimy old part. He reached down and pulled a bag full of parts off the shelf and together we looked. There, inside the bag, was the part I needed. He saw it, I saw it. Things were looking up.

I bet you are wondering what today’s big truth is about. We could talk about frustration. We could talk about determination. We could talk about some other word that ends with “ion.” But the big truth is this. I kept trying to put the wrong part in the right place and no matter how hard I tried—it just wasn’t going to fit. It was like trying to put a square peg in a round hole—it wasn’t gonna happen.