And so, it seems there is pressure, because I am not very good at this. It is easy to extend grace in the quiet morning with coffee and a soft blanket and nobody needing anything from me. It is hard to extend grace after a rushed morning of snapping and fixing and grumping around, after doing and saying those things you hate but they come out anyway, after stomping and moping and huffing through dinner.

It is hard to extend grace then, and I am really bad at it. Really bad. And so there is a sneaking, sweeping temptation to believe that grace is for the good ones, the quiet ones, the ones who hold it together. Grace is for the ones who have figured out things I haven’t, the ones who know how to hold the lid on tight, the ones who don’t even have a lid. Or maybe there is no grace at all. Because I can’t extend it, I am unable to receive it. And because I can’t receive it, I am unable to extend it. And ’round and ’round the circle I go, chasing peace and finding only chaos.

But if grace is only for those who deserve it, could we even call it grace? It would then be a reward, a prize, a ribbon of achievement. Grace if for the girl who isn’t very good at it, for the girl who grumbles and stumbles and stomps around. Grace is for her, today, right now. Do you know that girl? Do you know this kind of grace?

If you are looking for Tuesdays Unwrapped, we will pick back up on November 2. I simply couldn’t juggle weekly links and a daily post. But there may be a day during these 31 that I invite you to link, so stay tuned!

She told me not to touch the Jell-O as it settled in the fridge. It needed time. But I was only a little bigger than 7 and I just wanted a peek. The cherry red shined under the light of the fridge. Was it wet? Was it gel? One finger in, that’s all it took. One finger to discover if the magic had happened yet.

It hadn’t. And I found that out quick as I lost my balance, finger deep in red goo. It came tumbling off the glass shelf, onto the jam and the pickle lids, the linoleum and the pink jelly shoes. And the worst part? She was standing in the doorway to the kitchen, watching. And I didn’t know it.

There I was, unable to hide the sticky guilt of my disobedience. She could have yelled. She could have lectured. She could have scolded with a pointy finger and a go-t0-your-room. But that isn’t what she did.

Instead, she wore calm like a cloak as she moved towards me, a soft look on her face, love in her green eyes – mercy standing over me. And then, she began to help me clean it up – grace on hands and knees. The yelling would have been easier to take. But I would have forgotten it. This mercy of grace she offered when I deserved not-grace has stayed with me for 26 years.

When you know you deserve punishment but you are pardoned instead, gracious acceptance is the only response.

This is Day 4 of 31 Days of Grace. If you missed the beginning of the series over the weekend, you may want to scroll down to see the first 3 days. If you want to have Chatting at the Sky delivered right into your email inbox, click on subscribe and choosing the email option. Or you can just come back here each day. I like when you do that.

Looking for the other blogs hosting 31 Days Series? Here they are: Nesting Place, Balancing Beauty and Bedlam, My First Kitchen, Life With My 3 Boybarians, Reluctant Entertainer, The Inspired Room, Remodeling This Life.

I wasn’t born yet when Dick Sargeant replaced Dick York as Darrin on Bewitched in 1969, but you’d better believe I noticed in the reruns. My sister and I spent many a summer morning watching TBS in the 80s, and Bewitched was one of our mainstays. It didn’t seem right that they could just switch the actors and not say anything about it.

When I talk about grace, I have to talk about Jesus. Sometimes I wish it didn’t have to be that way, wish that I could offer more to the general market, wish that I could keep it all generic and one-size-fits, wish that I could switch Darrins and nobody notice. It would be easier. But it wouldn’t be true.

True grace, the real kind that is free, the real kind that comes without strings or expectation, only Jesus can extend. So to talk for a month about grace and to leave out Jesus would be cheap. It might be more comfortable for me, but it would leave giant holes and life-sized gaps. To talk about grace without Jesus would be like casting the second Darrin and not saying anything – It can be done, but it doesn’t feel right.

So even though I may not always say his name, just know that the only kind of grace worth thinking about for a month is the true kind that comes from his hands.

Welcome to the first of 31 Days of Grace! It’s finally October, the month that ushers in the season of tricking and treating, giving and thanks, merry and jolly, holy and hushed. It is the first long month of crazy. What if, every day in October, we took a few minutes to receive the gift of our belovedness? For 31 days straight, I want to walk with you towards a more spacious heart. I will not give you a list of things to do, I want to inspire you to receive the abundance of that which has already been done.

There are 8 of us writing a 31 Days series this month. We are all very different, but we have some things in common. One of those things is that we all believe that blogging is a valuable platform from which to communicate our passion, and so we are excited to offer you 31 Days of inspiration, information, and motivation (and for free!) Some of us will offer tips, tutorials, or some small thing to work on everyday. Others will provide a different perspective for you to consider when thinking about home or entertaining or decorating. I can’t wait to see what they all have to say.

But here, in this space on these days, I want to invite you to receive. What if you come here for a few minutes everyday in October with open hands, a willing heart, and a soul ready to breathe in sweet grace? Would it make a difference? I invite you to find out.

And for your convenience, here are the other 7 bloggers and topics:

31 Days to an Inspired Table :: My First Kitchen

31 Days to a Less Messy Nest :: Nesting Place

31 Days of Living Simply :: Remodeling This Life

31 Days of Autumn Bliss :: The Inspired Room

31 Days to More. . .With Less :: Beauty and Bedlam

31 Days to a Better Photo :: My 3 Boybarians

31 Days to Stress Free Entertaining :: Reluctant Entertainer

Speaking of Reluctant Entertainer, the winners of Sandy’s book are Amber Filkins and Rachel. Email me your addresses! emily(at)chattingatthesky(dot)com

If you haven’t subscribed to Chatting at the Sky yet and you don’t want to miss anything, this could be a good time to do so. Simply click on subscribe and choose a reader, or you can have each post delivered to you by email, right into your inbox. I look so forward to these next 30 days!