Love is Grace...

Dear Friend,

After almost 10 years of teaching , I found myself reflecting on my first years. In the beginning, I was very rigid, straight forward, and stuck to the script (written by an unknown author!) In good intention I thought it what was best for my students, families, and myself. Order meticulously enforced without consideration, love, and compassion was simply a recipe for disaster! But I thought I was ok! I thought it was necessary to show the world and the families I served that I was ‘serious’ about my profession. But in all actuality it did more harm than good. Although there was a smile on my face and many hugs given there was a very broken person within.

On the flip side, while I was embarking on my early years as an educator it paralleled with my the early years of motherhood. While stressed and overwhelmed with the responsibilities of a classroom, marriage, and young family I wasn’t always on point in my own children’s lives when it came to their education. I forgot sheets and homework assignments. Skipped over folder checks and signing permission slips and probably missed a couple conferences. As parents, my husband and I did our best but our hands were full! But even in all of what was going on, our children’s teachers extended second chances, made reminder phone calls and accommodated us as much as they could to keep us up to date. It was grace! I eventually realized I had to extend the same grace to my families that was extended to me. And The moment I shifted the dynamics of my classroom have been forever changed! Love is grace and Grace is Love! And the moment

God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.

Ephesians 2:8

Grace is gift that we cannot that we cannot earn, less alone give in our own strength! It is Jesus working through us. And we should be letting our lights shine and extending not just the same grace that has been extended to us...but the grace that God gave us through the gift of His son Jesus!

Jesus is the gift that was given when we didn’t deserve...while we were yet sinners! Who can you extend grace to who doesn’t deserve it? Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to show we’re we can extend the grace and love of God in someone else’s life today!

Grace and Peace,

Jess