There is no teaching that refreshes you like the doctrine of grace. No other religion has it. And it has the power to refresh you every time you hear of it even though you heard it a thousand times. 
It is because it is unlike everything else in this world. In this world, our value comes from within – whether it is what we are born with or worked for. We are valued for our good looks, intelligence, athleticism, skills, wealth, etc. All these are things we can boast of since they are associated with us. But grace comes from the outside. It has nothing to do with anything we do or are. It depends purely on God and God alone. It is unmerited favor. 
That is why grace is so easily forgotten, and ironically works to refresh us every time we hear of it because we forget it so easily.
So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.” Romans 11:5I listened to these words as I was driving to school with my heart heavy with things I must do this week. I want to live up to other people’s expectations. I want to live up to my family’s expectations. I want to live up to my own expectations. And all those expectations can weigh heavy on you. But hearing about God’s grace – that ultimately my value does not depend on how good a father or a husband or a pastor I have been, but purely on what Christ has accomplished for me on the cross, my soul was refreshed and made to rejoice. 
So, I am reminding you of God’s grace. You are not who the world says you are or even who you think you are. You are who God says you are. And God says that you are a beloved child made in His image and redeemed by His Son’s blood. 
PH