Not Our Doing
My name is Andy Odom, pastor of Canyon Creek Presbyterian Church in Richardson, Texas. Joe Albright invited me to give the Dial Hope message for today. We begin with a reading from Ephesians chapter 2…
God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ… For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God. (Ephesians 2:4,8)
Saved by grace. What an outlandish thought. I must admit, that I sometimes struggle with the whole idea of salvation by God’s grace. I think we all struggle with it sometimes. We are not wired properly to truly understand it. It takes time. It takes a lifetime of wrestling with a claim like that. After all, we live in a world filled with indifference, bias, greed, and arrogance, a world that does not have the appearance of something that is infused tip to toenail with the grace of God. War seems to be a constant now. Political dialogue continues to get more and more entrenched. Our own lives can feel more tomb-like than spiritual. This simply does not look like the life or the world that is promised us. And even so, even with all of that, Paul’s words come back to us again: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.” The words flow down like a steady stream that trickles right into the middle of the wars we fight and the problems we face. God sends forth grace so that we might live. It is, in a word, salvific.
Today, as you notice the things that entomb you; as wars are waged and our prayers are said, allow Paul’s words to hum in your ears: For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.
Let us pray: God of all time and place, you do for us what we cannot do. You speak to us when we cannot speak. You lift us up when we cannot stand. You save us when we fail miserably. The word is grace, and we are awestruck by it. Amen.
Daily Message Author: Andy Odom
The Rev. Andrew S. Odom grew up in Dallas, Texas and currently serves as senior pastor of Canyon Creek Presbyterian Church, a large and vibrant congregation in Richardson. He and his wife Denise, who is also a pastor, have two girls, Marguerite and Mackenzie. He holds degrees in economics and history from the University of Texas and completed his Master of Divinity degree at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Full Bio
