Romans 8:1 – Grits with Grace

Family, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, Scripture, thankful, Trials

Mirror, Mirror – Tell Me True

Posted on July 15, 2024July 12, 2024 by Dewayne Taylor

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1

I often avoid them like the plague. Mirrors and I have a complex relationship. While I enjoy mirrors in a room…I don’t enjoy me in the mirrors. They say that mirrors have a way of making a room look larger and brighter. But it is a whole different story when I stand before one. You see, the mirror reminds me of just how imperfect I am. I look and see all the ways I need to be better and find myself not really loving the man in the mirror.

Sometimes that is not the case. A friend of mine owned a home in Florida, and he was kind enough to let my family vacation there in the summer. It was a beautiful home with a pool and a hot tub, and we always felt so special when we stayed there. But there was one more thing that I liked a lot. You see, in the master bedroom, there was a free-standing mirror. It was taller than me…though that isn’t saying a lot…and for some reason it made me look…taller and thinner. Yup, that’s the truth. I would stand in front of that mirror, and it made me look like I had grown an inch or two and dropped a few pounds. Now that is my kind of mirror.

It didn’t matter that I really hadn’t lost any weight. What mattered was how the mirror made me feel. I felt better about the man in the mirror…or at least that mirror. While I regularly avoid mirrors even today, that was one mirror I intentionally sought out. Now the bottom line is life is filled with mirrors. First and foremost is the one in our own mind. That is the most critical mirror of all. Given half a chance we will find ourselves standing and staring at the mirror of our mind and discovering all the warts and flaws of our life. It is not a good mirror to gaze into.

There is another mirror and that is the mirror of public opinion. We live in a world where people are far too free with their opinion of others. Opinions are fine…everyone has one but for some reason when it comes to our opinion of others, often they are critical and painful. Because of that, if we are not careful, we walk in a room just waiting for someone to roll the mirror out…waiting for a reminder just how imperfect we are.

Our enemy the devil is the best at using mirrors. He whispers in our ear constantly reminding us of all our flaws and reminding us that it must be simply impossible for God to love us. Who could love a person like us and sadly, we often stand there in front of his mirror and listen to his cutting remarks. Unfortunately, we even believe what he says…even when we know it is not true. But unlike the mirror in Florida, there is a mirror that we can always trust and that always guides us in truth. It is the mirror of God’s Word.

You see, the Bible, the oldest and most trusted of all sacred writings is not a book of bondage but rather a book of freedom. It is a love note from our Dearest Daddy in heaven and in it He reminds us just how much He loves us and just how keen He is on us. From Genesis to Revelation, He speaks words over us of love and affirmation. Ever wonder just how fond He is of you? Well, fond enough to send His Son to a Roman cross to pay the price for our mistakes and sins. Amazing.

So, it seems like we need to make a choice. Which mirror will we choose to stand before? Will we allow our minds to fill us with self-condemnation? Will we let the mirror of public opinion determine our self-worth and self-image? Will we continue to allow Satan to whisper his lies into our hearts and minds? Or will we choose the mirror of God’s Word? There is a letter that Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome. In that letter, he tells them, “There is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.” In other words, to the ones who have chosen to believe and follow Jesus, all charges are dropped. While we still won’t be perfect…we will be perfectly forgiven. How about that?

As you journey through life today, choose to believe the mirror of God’s Word. Oh my, He is so proud to call you His child. He has never regretted allowing you to be a part of His family. Go ahead, read His love note, the Bible, you will find it written there. And if you listen carefully, you will hear Him whispering…not accusations but words of love. Oh, and you might hear Him letting you know that no matter what, “He’s got this.” Bro. Dewayne

Family, life, love, loving others, prayer, Scripture, thankful, Trials

Mirror, Mirror – Tell Me True

Posted on July 11, 2022July 10, 2022 by Dewayne Taylor

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1

Sometimes that is not the case. A friend of mind owned a home in Florida, and he was kind enough to let my family and me vacation there in the summer. It was a beautiful home with a pool and a hot tub, and we always felt so special when we stayed there. But there was one more thing that I liked a lot. You see, in the master bedroom, there was a free-standing mirror. It was taller than me…though that isn’t saying a lot…and for some reason it made me look…taller and thinner. Yup, that’s the truth. I would stand in front of that mirror, and it made me look like I had grew an inch or two and dropped a few pounds. Now that is my kind of mirror.

It didn’t matter that I really hadn’t lost any weight. What mattered was that is how the mirror made me feel. I felt better about the man in the mirror…or at least that mirror. While I regularly avoid mirrors even today, that was one mirror I intentionally sought out. Now the bottom line is life is filled with mirrors. First and foremost is the one in our own mind. That is the most critical mirror of all. Given half a chance we will find ourselves standing and staring at the mirror of our mind and discovering all the warts and flaws of our life. It is not a good mirror to gaze into.

Our enemy the devil is the best at using mirrors. He whispers in our ear constantly reminding us of all our flaws and reminding us that it must be simply impossible for God to love us. Who could love a person like us and sadly, we often stand there in front of his mirror and listen to his cutting remarks. Unfortunately, we even believe what he says…even when we know it is not true. But like the mirror in Florida, there is a mirror that we can always trust and that always guides us in truth. It is the mirror of God’s Word.

You see, the Bible, the oldest and most trusted of all sacred writings is not a book of bondage but rather a book of freedom. It is a love note from our Dearest Daddy in heaven and in it He reminds us just how much He loves us and just how keen He is on us. From Genesis to the Revelation, He speaks words over us of love and affirmation. Ever wonder just how fond He is of you? Well, fond enough to send His Son to a Roman cross to pay the price for our mistakes and sins. Amazing.

Family, fear, forgiveness, friends, Grace, life, loving others, Scripture, thankful, Trials

Grace and the Big Bang

Posted on June 15, 2022June 9, 2022 by Dewayne Taylor

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1

I had no idea. I never saw it coming. When I woke on that Wednesday morning, I had no idea that something as dramatic as an automobile accident was going to occur. In fact, up to the point of impact everything was routine and then just like that, it changed. Now keep in my mind, in the world of accidents, mine was, well, minor. No one was hurt and that was the most important thing. But regardless, it was a big deal. It was the kind of deal that leaves a person scarred and wiser.

That accident at that corner happened 16 years ago and yet to this day, I never approach it without thinking about that day. I always, and I mean always, look both ways several times…just to be sure. Yes, the big trees and bushy bushes that obscured my vision that day are long gone but the memories are not. They are my constant companion next to me in the driver’s seat and they whisper…be careful. That is not a bad thing as long as they are whispering and not shouting.

Perhaps there is an “accident” in your past that has left you a little scarred and a little wiser. The important thing is to make sure it stays in the past, forgiven, and is only invited in your present to whisper a wise word or two. The lessons of the past can help us not make the same mistake in our todays, but don’t let them own you.

Two more lessons came from that Wednesday “Closer Encounter of the Ouch Kind.” I learned that little things could take down big things. The other driver was driving a much smaller car, a Honda Accord.” I, on the other hand, was driving a Pontiac Grand Prix. Logic would say that I would win the day but amazingly my car was totaled, and she was able to drive her car away from the scene. How is that possible? She was the one who delivered the punch and fate determined where. She hit me right at the door post of the driver’s side door. It was a critical area that bend the firewall and a bunch of other things that weren’t supposed to be bent. Bottom line? It was a knock-out punch.

An important lesson was reenforced in my life that day. Smaller things can cause massive damage to bigger things. It is true with cars, but it is also true of things like reputations, character, and life. It is important that we guard our heart and minds and keep the things that matter well-guarded and safe. Remember the words written by the wisest man ever to live, King Solomon. He said we need to catch the little foxes that ruin the vines. You see, ruined vines don’t produce grapes and a ruined character takes a long time to recover.

Oh, and there was one more very important lesson from that day. The accident was my fault but there were some extenuating circumstances. The big trees and bushy bushes really shouldn’t have been there and later they were removed. But in my hand remained the ticket that said, “This was your fault.” The police office apologized for having to write the ticket but it all still said, “It was your fault.” But then an amazing thing happened. Someone heard about the accident and the ticket and extended…grace. Though I was technically in the wrong, they also knew the circumstances and the ticket was dismissed and the fine removed. Grace.

Paul talked a lot about grace in the New Testament part of the Bible but perhaps he said it best in a letter he wrote to the Christians in Rome. He said, “There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” In other words, because of Jesus, the guilt and penalty for their sins, for our sins, can be removed. And it doesn’t happen because we earn it, it happens because He loves us. You see, if we will believe in who Jesus was and trust what He did…the charges and penalty can be removed. We can be declared, “Not guilty.” How about that?

You may or may not have an “oops” on your driving record, but we all have plenty of oops as we travel the highways of life. It is good to know that there is Someone who has the power and the authority to extend grace—unmerited favor. His name is Jesus, and He is waiting to help us. No matter how obvious, no matter how big, you need to know, “He’s got this.” Bro. Dewayne

Family, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, loving others, Scripture, thankful, Trials

Pickup Offer

Posted on April 19, 2022April 18, 2022 by Dewayne Taylor

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17

I needed a truck. They say that there is one thing better than owning a truck. It is having a friend with a truck. A while back, Judy and I needed some new chairs for our patio. We found what we wanted at a not-so-local home and garden center. There were two problems. First, the store was located exactly 36.6 miles from our house. The other problem was the fact that eight chairs were not going to fit in our little car.

We used to have a van and that served as our pickup truck. While it wasn’t too manly, it did get the job done. But now we have a little car. The little car is zippy, and the little car gets 42 miles per gallon, but the little car will not carry eight chairs. The fact of the matter is the little car will not carry one chair. I had a problem. I needed a truck. Fortunately for me I have a friend who has one. He’s also the kind of friend you can call at 2:00 am and he will come. He’s the kind of friend who would loan me his great, big, shiny pickup truck.

I called, he said yes, and soon Judy and I were on our way to pick up the pickup. I had ridden in the truck before but never driven it. It was a big, manly truck which probably explains why I ran over six curbs in the first five miles. Judy, with some effort, climbed into the passenger side and I, with some effort, climbed into the driver’s side. Instantly something happened. As I slid behind the wheel I felt like John Wayne, Bruce Willis and Iron Man all rolled into one. Watch out boys, here comes “the Duke.”

I felt manly. I found myself looking down at people in lesser vehicles to see if they were looking up at me and admiring my manly throne on wheels. They weren’t. But the bottom line is when I climbed into this massive hunk of raw steel, I felt more. Bigger. Stronger. Almost invincible. Somehow, what I was riding in changed the way I saw myself. Let me say that again. What I was in changed the way I saw myself.

It was just about then that I realized the massive truck I was riding in was a lot like Jesus and me. You see the Bible teaches us that if anyone is in Christ, they become a new creation. Everything in the past is past and everything becomes new. While climbing in the truck didn’t change who I was, it did make me see myself differently. Jesus goes one step further. He not only makes me see myself differently…He in fact makes me different. Climb into Jesus and things change—you change. You become a new creation.

It gets even better. In Romans 8:1, Paul writes, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” No condemnation. That means all the sins are forgiven and all the charges have been dropped. I stand before the Judge knowing that I can’t be condemned. He wrote the law, passed the sentence, and then paid the penalty. The Judge paid the price for my sin. That is amazing.

Why stop now? Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:10 “For we are His workmanship [His masterpiece], created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Whoa. Masterpiece? Created for good works? You see, the truck made me feel like more, but Jesus made me more. Now don’t start getting all puffed up thinking you did something to deserve this. It’s all Him. The only thing we do is climb in and that happens only because we believe. That’s it. Faith alone.

So, if you need a truck, I hope you have a good friend…the kind you can call at 2:00 am…the kind that will loan you his big, shiny truck. But when it comes to a Savior, well, you can’t borrow that; you need Him for yourself, personally. And the best part, He is just waiting for you to call. He’s just waiting to make you new…to make you a masterpiece. He’s just waiting to be there for you. And all that stuff, the worry, anxiousness, fear, uncertainty, doubt, insecurity, and a bunch of other stuff you’ve been carrying…just toss it in the back of His truck and let Him carry it. You just rest in Him. He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne

Family, fear, forgiveness, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, prayer, Scripture, Southern born, thankful, Trials

Confession

Posted on February 22, 2022February 21, 2022 by Dewayne Taylor

So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1

It was the summer of my rebellion. I know, some people are born compliant, and some are born a little on the rebellious side. I was born compliant. I have always been a rule keeper—well, at least most of the time. I suppose that is why I took to religion so well. You see religion is all about keeping the rules. The idea is if you keep enough of the rules then people will like you and most importantly, God will like you. And sure enough, it worked—well, at least part one worked. In my younger years, most of the adults thought I was a good boy. Church? Got it. Drinking? Not a drop. Drugs? Nope. I can hear them saying it now, “That Dewayne is such a nice boy.” And, I suppose outwardly I looked pretty good, but pretty good won’t get you to heaven.

You see the second part of the religion mantra is that you can make God happy by performing—by keeping the rules. That one is 100% false. There is no one, except Jesus, that was good enough to go to heaven. Yet it seems so many church people say they believe that rules won’t get you to heaven but act as if they will. They carefully do this and that and boy, if you happened to be one of the ones who didn’t keep the rules, you were tried, convicted, and sentenced. That’s why I had to keep my cussing summer quiet.

I think maybe all the rule keeping must have finally got to me. The bottom line is during the summer between my junior and senior years of high school—I started cussing. I had a job at an apartment complex down the road from our house and I worked with the son of the head maintenance man. He was not a Jesus person, and he did like to cuss. So, one day, I just started cussing too. I had heard enough cuss words at school to know most of them, so I didn’t have to have any lessons…though I did have to work on my voice inflections.

It was a very tricky time in my life because I had to turn the cussing on at 8:00 am and I had to be sure and turn it off at 5:00pm. That’s what you have to do when you are living a double life. Under no circumstances did I want to spoil my good boy image at church or with my Momma and Daddy. I do remember one time I let a small one slip and Momma looked at me with eyes that said, “Where did that come from?” Of course, I didn’t, I couldn’t let her know that her baby son was a cusser.

And, as quickly as it came, it passed. At the end of the summer, I had to go back to school and therefore had to quit my job. All I know is that the cussing stopped and my rule keeping world got a little easier. I managed to please a lot of people, but I knew I was far from pleasing God. It would be several more years before I finally figured out that rule keeping didn’t work and religion didn’t either. When I was 21, I finally found grace and boy was that a game changer. Honestly, it is taking me a long time to shake the deep roots of rule keeping and religion. I’m still working on it.

You might ask, “How do you know if you are under the influence of religion and rule keeping?” Well, its two main indicators are self-condemnation and a tendency to judge others. Rule keepers are acutely aware when they or others around them break a rule. Rule keepers (and religious people) like to point out other people’s sins and faults because it makes them feel better about themselves. If they can make you feel bad, then it makes them feel better. It’s a twisted world.

God’s way is so much better than religion and rules. Did you know His Book, the Bible, actually says that when someone believes in Jesus and becomes one of His followers that there is no condemnation—none—nada? I mean when the prosecuting attorney and the judge both acquit you—the trial is over. I’m slowly learning just how valuable that is. There is an audience of One that Jesus followers must live for and that is God…their Heavenly Father…their Abba Father…their Dearest Daddy. I love what Toby Mac (a contemporary Christian singer) said, “I gave God a million reasons not to love me. Not one of them changed His mind.” I like that!

Well, I’m glad my cussing summer is ancient history. I still look back at those two or three months and wonder what in the world was I was thinking? The truth is…I probably wasn’t. But now, by grace, that, and all my other failures, warts and sins are forgiven…all because of Jesus. I’m so grateful for that. If you have never discovered grace and forgiveness, especially God’s kind, I hope you will check it out. Don’t get confused with religion and rule keeping like I did. God’s got something far, far, better than that. Think you’ve messed up too much to be forgiven? Nope…don’t give it a second thought. Trust me…He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne

Family, fear, forgiveness, Grace, gratitude, life, Scripture, thankful, Trials, wisdom

Grace and the Big Bang

Posted on May 13, 2021May 12, 2021 by Dewayne Taylor

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1

Two more lessons came from that Wednesday “Closer Encounter of the Ouch Kind.” I learned that little things can take down big things. The other driver was driving a much smaller car, a Honda Accord.” I, on the other hand, was driving a Pontiac Grand Prix. Logic would say that I would win the day but amazingly my car was totaled, and she was able to drive her car away from the scene. How is that possible? She was the one who delivered the punch and fate determined where. She hit me right at the door post of the driver’s side door. It was a critical area that bent the firewall and a bunch of other things that weren’t supposed to be bent. Bottom line? It was a knock-out punch.

An important lesson was reenforced in my life that day. Smaller things can cause massive damage to bigger things. It is true with cars, but it is also true of things like reputations, character, and life. It is important that we guard our heart and minds and keep the things that matter well-guarded and safe. Remember the words written by the wisest man ever to live, King Solomon. He said we need to catch the little foxes that ruin the vines. You see, ruined vines, don’t produce grapes and a ruined character takes a long time to recover.

Paul talked a lot about grace in the New Testament part of the Bible but perhaps he said it best in a letter he wrote to the Christians in Rome. He said, “There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” In other words, because of Jesus, the guilt and penalty for their sins, for our sins, can be removed. And ,it doesn’t happen because we earn it, it happens because He loves us. You see, if we will believe in who Jesus was and trust what He did…the charges and penalty can be removed. We can be declared, “Not guilty.” How about that?