So, what graces does Jesus want us to develop so that we reflect God's nature as his children and can live more effectively in God's kingdom? Jesus lists them:
Be gentle – kind, tender, calm.
Be sad /mourn with those who mourn – come alongside others wherever they may be.
Hunger and thirst for uprightness in yourself and others. Don’t just wish for uprightness but
hunger and thirst for it, and work for it in yourself and others as though your life depended on it!
Be merciful. This will dampen a spirit of judgement, a need for revenge and entitlement.
Live with a pure heart. Confess your
own unrighteousness and accept God’s forgiveness; forgive others their wrongs.
Be a peacemaker. First, cultivate God's peace in your own life and then share that peace with those around you.
Growing in these graces, as the chrysalis grows more and more into the glorious butterfly, enables you to reflect God's glory in your life more and more. This takes time; it is a process over a lifetime. It requires effort and perseverance, so work at it every day and don’t give up.
Jesus desires these graces for you because he knows they will also fill you with joy and confidence as God’s child. In the verses above, exercising each of these graces also brings blessing as we experience life among others in God's kingdom.
As we prepare for our conversation with Jesus today, we have much to consider.
Go back to the be-attitudes listed above: What graces is the Spirit inviting you to ask
for?
Then, earnestly seek Jesus' help in conversation with him to develop them and make them more visible and evident in your life.
