Grace Space

Have you ever been at a social gathering and met anyone for the first time, and felt that guarded space between you and the person? How much do I share/not share. Us guys typically fall back onto the "what do you do" or weather conversation. I suppose there are some social etiquettes which have us keep this buffer. I am not a very good buffer keeper. I tend to want to dig right in, and sometimes will showcase some of my more personal goings on that may breach the social acceptance—perhaps sharing something about how my boys clogged the toilet bowl and held of reporting to Dad for a plunge for two days (TWO DAYS—needless to say it was pretty bad. I mean how could the continue to go about there business without making mention of this—but I digress). So maybe I am a social space cadet.

But what about the space of grace? The space that says its okay to be open. Its okay to share. Come into my space and life. I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours. 

What about the "churched", the "believer", the "christian", the "saved". Is our space littered with closed ears, impatience, piety, over-education, judgment, political or personal opinion?

Or do we provide "grace space". A space that is less a buffer and more a a sponge—where story, issue, problem, strength, need, gift, can be held between two (or many). And the sponge can be absorbed in honesty—and be wrung out in encouragement, supply, forgiveness, support, strength, shelter. A space that speaks— "When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged...", Acts 11:23.

Oftentimes I don't think the Church behaves this way—even with our own. We keep our private things private. We don't share. I know folks who live in two worlds. All the while grace provides the space to erase the need to keep our world's separate.

Full disclosure is risky. You've got to have trust, hope, faith, vulnerability. You've got to receive grace. And give it.

Too much risk management going on—and not enough unmanaged grace.