Receiving Grace

One afternoon, my officemate and I were talking about practices of different religions. She told me that she is actively involved in church activities and that she enjoys them very much. Years ago, she would have preferred night out with friends and have fun like the usual teenagers do. But now, she found herself tired of her old ways and started to discover the intangible rewards in serving God. She eventually became active in hosting church events which also helped her grow and mature as a professional. This became her avenue to share and develop her talent and skills.

On the contrary, I admitted that I used to serve the church through singing with the choir. But I suddenly stopped doing so because of the people I was with. Simply because, I expect them
to be as good-natured as what they preach. But as I involve myself, I saw something very disheartening. Every week, it just keeps piling up. Every word, just makes me think twice. The disillusionment was just too much that I had to withdraw my membership to avoid such "negative" crowd.

Then my office-mate told me "Maybe you are expecting too much and you are also forgetting that they are just human beings"

All of a sudden, my mind cleared up like how the ravishing waves of the sea clears the shore. Suddenly, I received Grace from Grace- yes, that's my office-mate's name.

Me and Grace

Because of her, I now believe that spirituality is internally rooted. It really depends on you and how you stay true to what you believe in.

Today, I commit to see each day- every moment as an opportunity to practice church's teaching gracefully. I believe that is one of the best ways to serve God. It also shows the value of integrity- where we choose to do the right thing even no one is looking. We can cheat the world, but we can never cheat ourselves.

"What you are is God's gift to you, what you become is your gift to God"-Hans Urs von Balthasar