John 1: 14, 16

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. ... From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.

Ephesians 4:7

But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

A friend recently recommended I listen to a Bonnie Raitt song called “Just Like That.” He knew I would like the story of grace. She sings about a woman who lost her son unexpectedly and how she grieved for years and felt Jesus’ comfort and grace had passed her by. She isolated herself in depression until one day a man came to the door wanting to meet her and share with her that her son’s heart had been donated to him and gave him life. And -- just like that -- grace found her. I love this song as it speaks to the human dilemma of believing grace is for someone else. Grace is the cornerstone of Jesus’ ministry, as the scriptures above tells us, and yet it can be hard for us to understand for ourselves or others or apply to our lives.

I was reminded of another story which shows how grace can happen unexpectedly. The story took place in an NBA basketball playoff game some years ago. This night there were 20,000 people in the stands, and they all stood for the singing of the National Anthem, and on this night, a 13-year-old girl had earned the right to sing the National Anthem before the game began. Everyone was waiting to hear her sing the words she had sung hundreds of times without a flaw. Only this night the words wouldn’t come. The words seemed stuck in her throat, and when some did come out, they came in a jumbled, confusing order. She wanted to disappear; she wanted the floor to open up and swallow her. She was about to run off the court and hide, when suddenly, someone was standing beside her, his left arm around her, comforting and protecting. He began to whisper the forgotten words to the “Star-Spangled Banner,” and she responded by saying "Yes, I remember!" Then he began to sing with her softly, until her confidence grew, and with his right arm he motioned for the crowd to join in, and many sang as they never had before. It was a shining moment of redemptive love and grace.

The girl’s savior that night was the coach of the home team, himself a former NBA star. When he was asked why he alone responded to the girl’s distress that way, he said, “I just didn’t want her to be alone.” The coach’s modest statement does not do justice to his actions, for in wanting her to not be alone, he came to her in her flawed, distressed state and gave her grace. Grace found her. Is this not the wonderful good news that Jesus offers to all of us? When we are in our most distressed state, when we are in our darkest hour, when we think we’ve missed God’s grace, grace finds us. And it’s freely given.

Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7
Psalm 66:1-12
2 Kings 5:1-3, 7-15c
Psalm 111
2 Timothy 2:8-15
Luke 17:11-19