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A Prayer for Grace-strengthened Hearts

It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by graceHeb. 13:9

Be growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen. 2 Pet. 3:18

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of needHeb. 4:18

      Dear Lord Jesus, it occurs to me that this may be the most understated verse in the Bible. It’s “good” for our hearts to be strengthened by grace? How about over-the-top essential and comprehensively transformative? How about, “Don’t even try to live the Christian life without giving yourself to the liberating journey of growth in grace.”

We do all kind of things to take care of our physical hearts, but what will it profit me if I eat only foods from Whole Foods, can still run an eight-minute mile at age sixty-five, have a cholesterol level of 125 and a resting heart rate of 59, and yet have a heart that is weak in grace? “Physical training definitely has some value, but godliness has value for all things, for both this life and the life to come” (1 Tim. 4:8)

So, Jesus, lead me to the gospel-gym, the training table, the sauna, the spa, the regimen of your choosing, which will cause my heart to grow stronger and stronger and stronger in your grace. For surely the more my heart is strengthened by grace, the more it will beat for your glory; the more it will be healed of heartbreaks and heartaches; and the less room it will have for idols and illusions, and the less time for pettiness and selfishness.

As my heart is strengthened by grace, I will repent quicker, forgive deeper, and love louder. I will throw more gospel parties and fewer pity parties. I will not think less of me; I will just think about me less of the time. Indeed, it is good—it is very good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace. So very Amen I pray, in your holy and healing name.

 

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