When you get twelve minutes, this clip with Craig Ferguson is worth watching.
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Have you ever had a moment in your life when someone looked right into your soul and spoke words of grace? Have you had someone tell you that you are a cherished child of God?
It is life-altering.
So why don’t we do this more? Why do we hold back on those words of grace? What would happen in families, friendships, and churches if we could speak those deep words of gracious affirmation?
“So why don’t we do this more?”
I believe this is the key to being a Christ-follower: giving grace.
We may not do it more because we are still not so far removed from receiving those words of grace ourselves, from God himself.
This clip was awesome, Mike. How refreshing to hear truth and sincerity!
Someone speaking Grace to me these last few months has been from those who some would seem most unlikely and those who have not I have been the most surprised and disheartened about.
It seems in the church if we were all more open and honest about our own sin and struggles there would be more words of Grace in the air but it has been my experience that many do not want to hear or be near some who are struggling.
sound cynical …hope not…
I believe that’s why even from the pulpit things like abusing your wife (yes, you would be surprised) abusing your children, absence from your family, words of hate and apathy, alcoholism and pornography and gossip and so much more should be talked about and said man, this is not okay. It seems that sin is so general that noone feels the affect or knows how to deal with it in some one else. Props to this guy…thanks for sharing it with us.
I pray that today I will have my ears and eyes open to others struggles and will be in the starting block and ready to roll up my sleeves and love them actively.
p.s.
“One word Frees us of all the weight and pain of life: That word is love.”
SOPHOCLES
The clip was excellent. It is good to hear those words from someone in the entertainment industry.
I know that I hold back on those words of grace because I can barely make myself believe them. I know they are true, and love to hear them myself.
Excellent clip! Thanks for pointing us in that direction. It’s interested that Ferguson noticed a look in Costner’s eyes, and when Costner didn’t retaliate it became like a sharp pain in his side.
The reason I don’t offer more grace is because I so quickly forget the grace I’ve received.
Great Clip! I’m working on The Dark Side of Leadership: Sex, Drugs, Alcohol and Accountability for Pepperdine this year and this clip might make it into the presentation somewhere.
Thanks for the link and if any of you have resources related to my topic please contact me.
I am ten years now the beneficiary of a tremendous story of grace that hit me between the eyes even when I didn’t want it. God wrung out my world.
Peace.
Random note for Mike (college hoops fan) from me (NBA hoops fan):
Mike I know March Madness is starting, but the best game in the month of March was played last night in Dallas. College hoops just cannot compare.
Christians ought to be the brightest light of hope to all the world. We’ve been slow starters in spots, but momentum is in the air! I love being us right now. Thanks for the clip. We’ve got a world to reach…and everyone we know is within reach. I’ll join the rest of you…count me in to express words of abundant life….now!
That clip is just one more reason that I think we need to hear more personal testimonies in church!!! Excellent!
It is life-altering.
How true, Mike, how true.
One Sunday morning after “worship” service and before classes began, I was on my way out of the building to get on with my personal life. One of the dear brothers in that small congregation in Mexico City, came up to me, gave me a hug, [abrazo] and whispered in my ear,
Hermana, esperemos que una de estas domingos, podrias quedarte con nosotros en la clase. Te necesitamos! “Sister, we pray that one of these Sundays, you will be able to stay with us for the class. We need you.”
I never missed another class unless I was out of the City or ill.
Little words, huge expression of love. Small hug, huge encouragement. We can all do this. It does require looking into each others eyes. What do we see? Is there pain, fear, exhaustion, sadness, or maybe excitement, joy, anticipation? We can respond to what we see. It takes only a moment and can truly, as you say Mike, be a life-altering event.
AND, the clip was great. I agree with Beaner, we really do need more personal testimonies in our churches. We need more transparency accompanied, responded to by extended grace and love. We all have some kind of story similar to Ferguson’s that could well help another face similar challenges. Sorta like living 2 Corinthians 1:3-11 - ya think?
Wow, Mike -
Your post today on words of grace could not have come at a more perfect time for me. You see, my post today at Finding Direction is about all of us planting a garden TODAY with seeds of fruits of the Spirit (and I give everyone directions there on how to do this for themselves, their spouses, their children - their families and Bible classes) that they will grow and cultivate day by day in the days to come.
I told my readers that I would join in with them to do the same thing myself starting today and I picked randomly my word for the day to try to emulate and it was GRACE!! (Eph. 4:7) I’ve been racking my brain trying to figure out how to show grace today in my life and then I drop by here and you say:
” Have you had someone tell you that you are a cherished child of God?
It is life-altering.”
Now I know exactly what I’m going to spend the rest of my day doing. Just what you said.
I told my readers that we’d report in with each other (see my post for the instructions for each one to follow at the end of each day) from time to time at Finding Direction to see how everyone is doing - and growing - so I’ll have to report in with my own findings as I go along.
One lady is going to take my idea and the instructions for the garden to her Ladies’ Bible class and another reader, who is a minister, emailed me to ask me if he could include a shortened version of my post in their weekly bulletin this week! (It’s Greg England of “The Rev’s Ramblings” out in Long Beach, California.)
So I’m excited! An excited happy Christian, whata ya think?!
Y’all drop by and join in with all of us to grow your own spiritual garden this spring and see what difference it makes in your life and in your families lives!
Cheers & Blessings to you all today! Dee
P. S. Mike - our granddaughter is now scheduled to be born next week one day - maybe on next Tuesday. It’s hard to wait these last few days, as I know you know.
Mike, I remember a certain minister who emailed to me from me far away….Julie, you are salt and light.
Those few words were powerful and were felt as a blessing of grace.
Great clip. Thanks.
I’m not sure what’s funnier, Craig’s story about the drunk COE priest/bum or the fact that a CoC preacher sent me to a clip with the repeated use of the word “horse beep.”
All joking aside, it was a good clip, and a rare insight from an honest perspective. I wish more people were open about their past faults… including those of us in the church.
Very honest clip. Speaks to me of recognizing, let alone removing, the log from my eye before scrutinizing the speck in my brother’s eye. I have never struggled with alcohol addiction, but I have loved ones who have and do. Truth is truth, no matter the irregular delivery from whence it arises.
Mike-
These last three weeks, I have been blessed by someone each week in the men’s ministry, speaking words of grace to me, me personally, and I to others. None of us will ever be the same, I think.
Mike, I agree. It is life altering. On those rare occasions when someone has looked deep into my eyes and soul and communicated love and grace to me from God, I have been uncomfortable, humbled, and uplifted - all at the same time. I think particularly about a time or two at the Parish Hermitage (www.parishhermitage.org) with Eddie Parish. Because of these kind of experiences of God’s love and grace to me, I have savored every opportunity to “pay it forward” to clients and others. I have found it is just as rich an experience on the other side of the conversation. Thanks for continuing to touch on such meaningful life themes in your posts!
Those words and moments are powerful. Especially as they happen when you’re in deep need of it, but can’t ask for it.
Honestly, a lot of times I feel that my words aren’t good enough to encourage someone. My poor, problematic, worry-some, angry, passive, hurt self can’t produce any good. Just shows how twisted my thinking is. ‘
Thanks for the reminder.
The most powerful part of that clip for me was when he talked about Kevin Costner and “meeting” him, how that changed his thinking…. his words were more than just words, they have an impact on people. If we would start “meeting” people getting to know them for “people” and not just “problems”,”addicts”,”poor people”, “homeless”, we might be able to better see how we can impact their lives for good instead of crushing them even further.
Maybe we hold back words of grace because we aren’t comfortable with its reminder of our personal pain that only grace can heal.
Is there a way to stop this clip and then resume it? I’ve gotten about 10 minutes into it twice and had to bail because of a phone call.
Remember on your other post, how I said that I HATE Basketball, but that i do a bracket sheet every year anyway? Well….I’m 15/16 right (Duke….wha’ happened???)
My husband is 9/16 - tee hee
The most interesting thing to me about the clip was how audience members didn’t get the seriousness of what Ferguson was trying to communicate. At the end, there was less laughter; however, at the beginning he was struggling to get them to take him seriously. While I’m sure a lot of it has to do with the abrupt change in format (expected comedy to something serious), I think that people are generally just afraid of being serious and feeling sympathy/empathy for others. It is uncomfortable for most of us - and thus, I don’t believe we speak “deep words of courageous affirmation” often enough.
Terry,
Don’t answer the phone!
Terry (another)
In the name of discussion, I’ll throw this out there. I too am encouraged to see the worldly express a little grace. But what is it worth. Bonhoeffer talks about cheap grace. I don’t think this is exactly what he’s talking about but, this guy didn’t say anything about God. In fact, the closest he came was ridiculing Ted Haggart. I presume this is because he is one of the powerful who are not worthy of his grace. Only the weak multi-millionaire 20 something girls who sell sex to our children are worthy of his grace. Maybe it’s over analyzing and we should just take good will wherever it exists. But I can’t help but think that at the end of the day this is a little (or a lot) hollow if God’s not in it.
Kyle, how do you know that God is not in it? I think he is just saying that we all have battles and how terrible it is for us to rip into each other and make fun of each others’ struggles. Why can’t we take it as honest soul searching? I felt like he was being authentic and even shared some of his own story…it felt to me like testimony.
Kyle, please watch the clip again; he wasn’t ridiculing Ted Haggart, he was ridiculing treatment programs that make cheap and completely unrealistic promises.
I love this. Thanks so much for posting this. I wish we all looked at each other with this much grace.
I’ve thought about this one alot. I’m surprised there wasn’t more discussion about it.
Gary - I think you’re right, or at least more than I am. And Julie is right that I don’t know anything about his relationship with God. That really wasn’t my point. I was really trying to put my finger on the difference in a non-Christian (which he may not even be) showing grace and a Christian showing grace. Is there a difference to you?
Kyle, just off the top of my head, I don’t think there is a difference in the sense that people who show grace to others have almost always been shown grace themselves. Of course, a difference betwen Christians and non-Christians generally comes in “who” has demonstrated grace for them: Christians will acknowledge God as the great grace-giver. But, as far as how it looks to some one else, there probably isn’t much of a difference. God designed us all to be capable of conducting grace to others, whether we recognize where it ultimately comes from or not.
We have lost the art of blessing children and friends.
I should paint that so broadly…most of us have lost it. Some do it very well.