July 16, 2025

GRACE AND PEACE

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group of people or any human authority, but by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead. All the brothers and sisters here join me in sending this letter to the churches of Galatia. May God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. Jesus gave his life for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live. All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.”

Galatians 1:1-5 NLT

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TODAY’S THOUGHT

There are some things that just naturally belong together — peanut butter and jelly, macaroni and cheese, milk and cookies. In the same way, in Paul’s letters, there’s a pair of words that always appear together: “grace and peace.”

This phrase can be easy to skip over in our Bible reading. But when we pause to reflect, we see how powerful this combination truly is.

Grace (charis) was a word used much like “aloha” in Hawaii — for greetings and farewells. It means joy, favor, and especially in the New Testament, it means the unearned, undeserved favor we receive from Jesus Christ. Grace is God’s gift that saves and transforms us.

Peace (shalom) means so much more than the absence of conflict. It means wholeness, harmony, and restoration. It’s being right with God, at rest in our souls, and at peace with others.

When we truly receive God’s grace, we begin to experience real peace. Knowing we are forgiven, free, and loved by God gives us a peace that goes beyond human understanding.

The beautiful thing is we can grow in grace every day. For many of us, especially if we grew up with religion as a list of rules, it’s life-changing to discover that grace isn’t earned — it’s given. But grace isn’t a license to do whatever we want and then ask for forgiveness later. Real grace transforms our hearts. It changes our desires from living for the flesh to living by the Spirit.

When we allow grace to work deeply in us, peace naturally follows. We don’t have to fear judgment — instead, we fall deeper in love with Jesus.

So, let’s be people full of grace and peace. If you find yourself lacking peace, maybe it’s time to ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand grace more fully.

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TODAY’S PRAYER

Holy Spirit, please help me grasp the power of grace and peace in my life. Help me to live under grace so that Your peace can guard my heart and mind each day. Amen.

“Scroll down to share what you feel God is saying based on today’s reading.”