Well, it was bound to happen. My husband and I finally got pickle-balled. Our neighbors all play and two of them invited us to join them on the Colington courts for a lesson/game. I immediately responded with all the reasons why my game would be terrible, starting with my lack of depth perception, my out-of-shape arms, etc. As it turned out it was a lot of fun and I wasn’t as horrible as I thought I would be.

Part of the reason it was an enjoyable was that our opponents gave us unlimited mulligans. Now, if you play golf, you’ll recognize that word. For the uninformed like me, a mulligan is basically a free do-over. Because we had never played before, each serve that didn’t make it across the net or that made it too far over the net was a chance for a mulligan. And by the way, you don’t score extra points by hitting the ball over the tall fence enclosure and then having to chase it all the way down Colington Road. Seemed unfair, but there you have it.

In theological terms, we call this grace. Grace is the undeserved, unmerited favor of God that offers us unlimited mulligans. Fell off the wagon? Mulligan. Committed a sin yet again? Mulligan. Walked away from God’s will for your life? Mulligan. God loves us so much he offers a steady stream of grace whenever we confess and repent. You can always come home again.

Ephesians 2 (The Message)

^7-10 Now God has us where he wants us, with all the time in this world and the next to shower grace and kindness upon us in Christ Jesus. Saving is all his idea, and all his work. All we do is trust him enough to let him do it. It’s God’s gift from start to finish! We don’t play the major role. If we did, we’d probably go around bragging that we’d done the whole thing! No, we neither make nor save ourselves. God does both the making and saving. He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing.

I had the chance last week to talk about grace to two extraordinary teenagers who are about to be baptized in my church. Their pursuit of this sacrament was fostered by an extended family who is strong in their faith and triggered by the death of their great grandmother a year ago. Granny also got baptized in my church as a much older adult. Seeing this commitment made this boys want to make the same commitment for themselves. As we talked about the gift of grace that God offers to everyone, they could visualize this in their great-grandmother’s life.

You, too, can be a means of grace for someone. Your offer of love, kindness, help, and free mulligans can go a long way in someone’s life. Is God calling you to extend his unconditional love to someone who needs it? Don’t delay. God’s waves of love are available to all.

Heart Waves by Beth Rary