Grace Is Enough - Enough Grace

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 (c) 2014 Linda M. Rhinehart Neas

Last week, we began a journey to unpack the multifaceted term, Grace.  In theology, Grace is the unmerited, freely given favor and love of the Divine. Grace is the Spirit of the Divine within us, strengthening us. Grace is a virtue divinely given. 

In the secular realm, grace can be a form of beauty, a means to forgive or show mercy, a moral strength or a prayer before meals. 

Multifaceted, Grace appears to be something to everybody. In unpacking the meaning, lets begin with one of the terms, "sufficient Grace," that comes from the Christian Bible - 
 
(2 Corinthians 12:9) "But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' "

What does this term mean? What is Sufficient Grace? 

 Encyclopedia.com tells us that sufficient grace is:

"a division of internal actual grace, sufficient grace is used in two senses: (1) grace that gives sufficient ability to perform a salutary (beneficial) act, prescinding (removed) from the result...grace is always sufficient in this sense or it would not be grace;(2) purely sufficient grace, which does not obtain a good, free act, but gives sufficient power to produce one—grace inefficacious (useless) in the production of a good, free act (but effective in strengthening those performing the act)."

Since this blog is Interfaith/Interspiritual, let's look at this from a wider perspective. Sufficient Grace (1) blesses, enlightens, inspires, creates, or produces goodness; (2) Sufficient Grace is the ability to be enlightened, blessed, inspired to rise above a problem to bring about a positive result.
  
An example of (1) might be the blessing of knowledge that allows you to understand how to fix a problem, or, (2) not having the wisdom to know what to do in a situation but being inspired in the moment to do what needs to be done. 

Grace is enough. We have it all around us. Blessings upon blessings. But, we must look with open heart and mind to see all the Grace in this world, because it can be obscured by lenses of hate, despair and negativity.  In addition, there is enough Grace to see us through all the trials and tribulations in our lives, if we but stay open to blessings, inspiration, enlightenment. A closed heart and mind does not reap the gifts of Grace. 

May our hearts and minds be open to Grace and all its gifts. 

 Blessings!

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