Colleen Orchanian

I have been thinking about grace, and how the unlimited grace God makes available to each person. These days I can recognize grace in my life. I have the grace of a long marriage, the grace of motherhood, the grace to serve in different ways in my church, and the grace to do this podcast and write books. It's crazy the amount of grace in my life – like an explosion of grace.

It's not always been this way. I was lost for 20 years, far from God, rarely giving much thought to Him or to my eternal soul. I believed, but my belief didn't impact the way I lived my life. I wondered, was God not offering grace during that time? Of course, He was. Maybe he was rationing it – just giving me a little grace – not the full dose. I surely didn't deserve much given my choices in life.

Then I remembered the definition of grace: a free and undeserved gift of God that helps us live our call as children of God so we can have eternal life with Him (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1996). Given that definition, God was certainly NOT rationing grace because I was lost. God is always magnanimous in his gifts to us – always providing abundant grace.

The problem was not with God, who was doing His part. It was with me. Somehow, in many different ways, I was blocking grace from touching my life, my heart, my mind, and my soul. We do that sometimes. God has a gift of grace for us and we reject it or block it.

When we brought our son for a college visit a few years back, we learned about all they had to offer students so they could succeed. There were tutors, mentors, people to help with writing, counselors, substance abuse support, and more. The university wanted all students to succeed, so they created student resources to address the issues that sometimes caused people to drop out. Yet even with an abundance of resources available, students still drop out or flunk out.

It's a little like grace. Even with an abundance of God's grace, we fail to live a Christian life. Why? Why don't students use the resources available? Why don't we accept the grace available to us? Here are some possible reasons:

Sin. Some college students have very active social lives. They party all the time, skip classes, miss assignments, and waste someone's money. It's the same with God's grace. The prodigal son lived a wild life, breaking all kinds of commandments. The Father's grace was always available, but sin was more fun. Sin blocks God's grace.

Unforgiveness. Many years ago, while on a motorcycle ride with a group of friends, another rider passed me in a curve. That's a dangerous move, and I was furious. There was a moment of grace when God told me to calm down. I silenced his voice and thought in my head, No. I need to keep this anger until the next stop. Don't let it die down because I'm going to let him have it. I did not want to forgive the other rider. God gave me the grace and I said, No thanks.

Disinterest. During my many years away from the Church, I was sometimes invited to a friend's church but always declined. Those invitations were moments of grace, but I wasn't interested.

Fear. Sometimes God gives us a nudge: to pray with someone, to volunteer at church, to join or lead a group, and we reject it. We say no because it's out of our comfort zone. We don't think we can do it or aren't sure what it will be like, and we reject the gift of grace. God is saying, Get out of the boat, and we're too afraid. We don't realize that Jesus is the one calling and he won't let us drown.

Pride. In a typical modern college, some students know they are failing and need help, but they won't ask for it because they don't want others to know. They have always been one of the smart kids and now they're struggling. It's a blow to the ego and they want to keep it a secret. We can do that spiritually. Maybe there is a grace of an invitation to Bible Study, but we don't want to go because we don't want people to know that we can't find anything in the Bible. We've never studied before and we'll look like an idiot. That's pride blocking grace.

Peer Pressure. God wants to give us the grace to be saints on this earth, witnesses in the world, live out our purpose in building the Kingdom of God, and rest with him in eternity. Sometimes we reject that because we don't want to be seen as an extreme Christian – a Jesus freak. What would people think? Grace is rejected in favor of the approval of the world.

What can we do to remove obstacles to grace?

1. Acknowledge the graces you have received and thank God for them. Begin to notice how God has blessed you each day and offer prayers of thanksgiving.

2. Pray about how you have resisted God's grace in the past – and how you continue to resist today. What keeps you from receiving all that God has for you? Is there some healing you need to overcome those blocks?

3. Ask God for the graces you need. Believe in the promise of 1 Peter 5:10-11: God always gives you all the grace you need.

When we remove barriers to God's grace, we will be overwhelmed with the gifts he has for us, like these graces:

• Faith. This is a gift of grace, not something we earn (Ephesians 2:8).

• Perseverance and strength. 2 Timothy 2:1 reminds us that God's grace gives us strength in times of trial.

• Healing and restoration. 1 Peter 5:10 tells us that after we suffer, the God of grace will restore and strengthen us.

• Gifts. In 1 Corinthians 15:10, Paul tells us that he is who he is by God's grace. It is by grace he can do the work given to him. Each of us has gifts given for the building up of the kingdom.

• Mercy. God offers mercy while we are in our sins (Romans 5:8). We don't have to be perfect for God to offer grace. Where sin abounds, grace abounds even more (Romans 5:20).

• Knowledge of Jesus as Lord. This is the greatest grace – and without it we are nothing.

The list of graces is endless. Everything is grace, and because of that, we should continuously offer prayers of thanksgiving.

God is holding out his hands to you, and they are filled with all the graces you need to live an abundant life. Say yes. Receive the gifts with joy and thanksgiving. Be zealous for the Lord and give Him all the glory.

Questions for prayer:

1. What doubts have you had about God's grace in your life?

2. What obstacles have you built to resist God's grace?

3. How might you tear down those obstacles and experience the abundance of grace God has for you?