Grace for the Goals You Didn't Reach - Your Nightly Prayer - October 20th

Audio By Carbonatix

Grace for the Goals You Didn’t Reach
Your Nightly Prayer
By Clarence Haynes Jr.

TONIGHT’S SCRIPTURE

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” - 2 Corinthians 12:9

SOMETHING TO PONDER

Back in high school, right before summer break, I made a declaration that I was going to lose twenty pounds over the summer. Not only did I make this promise to myself, but I announced it to all my friends with all the confidence I could muster. "Just wait," I said, "You won't recognize me when I come back in September." Well, September came around, and when I walked back through those school doors, guess what came with me? Every single one of those twenty pounds.

Have you ever been there? You set out to accomplish something meaningful, maybe even declared it publicly, and then fell short. These moments have a way of making us feel like failures. It's even worse when the goals matter deeply to your life, like making a promise to eat healthier, spend less money, or telling the Lord, "This is the last time I'll ever commit this sin."

These are good things to strive for, but when we don't reach them, we can be devastated and question our worth and value. It’s precisely in these moments that we need to understand the life-changing power of God's grace.

A lesson I've learned about grace

Most of us recognize our need for grace for salvation. After all, Scripture tells us we're saved by grace through faith. But our need for God's grace doesn't stop at salvation. If anything, it grows. You need God's grace to sustain you, to lift you when you're down, to encourage you when you want to quit, and yes, to strengthen you when you feel weak. Paul understood this when he wrote about God's response to his own struggles: My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.

God never intended for you to walk this journey of faith in your own strength. His desire was always for us to find our power through his grace. Nowhere is this grace more needed than when you fall short of something you are striving for. Maybe your intention was finally to commit to reading your Bible and praying every day. Somehow, you didn't reach your daily goal, but you did it more than you did before. My friend, that may not feel like it, but that's a win. Not only does God's grace cover the rest, but his grace encourages you to keep going. You see, when you fall short, God's grace doesn't chew you out for failing to reach your goal. Instead, his grace becomes the source that picks you up and motivates you to continue. As Paul discovered, when we are weak, then we are strong because God's power shows up in our weakness.

That’s why you must change the way you view failure. Failure is simply a short-term view of your situation, because we will all fail at some point. It is part of the story, but doesn't have to be the end of the story. God's grace allows you to look at your shortcomings and still see what you have accomplished instead of focusing only on what you did not accomplish.

God's grace doesn't measure your worth by your performance. His love for you isn't based on whether you hit your targets or keep your promises perfectly. His grace is sufficient, not because of your achievements or your perfect track record but because you need it. Even more so in your failures. Just like those twenty pounds I didn't lose that summer, we all have goals we may not reach. However, as much as life is about what you accomplish, it's also about how you progress. God's grace is there to make sure you keep progressing. As long as you are moving forward, even if it's slower than you planned, you're going to be okay. Because his grace is sufficient, and his power is made perfect in your weakness.

So tonight, if you're reflecting on goals you didn't reach or promises you didn't keep perfectly, remember that God's grace covers your unfinished plans and unmet goals. Your shortcomings don't diminish his love for you, and his power is most evident not when you have it all together, but when you need him most. That's the kind of grace worth resting in tonight.

YOUR NIGHTLY PRAYER

Lord,
Help me remember and rely on your grace. Help me not to depend on my own abilities but to depend on your strength. As I look at each day, let me live them in your grace and not my strength. As I do that, even if I don’t do everything I planned, I can rest knowing your grace suffices to make up for my weaknesses. Thank you for your grace.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.

THREE THINGS TO MEDITATE UPON

1. Grace is the power you need to live your Christian life.

2. You are not just saved by grace, but you live by grace, you walk by grace, everything in your Christian life flows out of God’s grace.   

3. God’s grace is multiplied the most in your life when you admit you are weak.

Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Nicola Katie

Clarence L. Haynes Jr. is a dynamic speaker, Bible teacher, and co-founder of The Bible Study Club, dedicated to helping people live with purpose and clarity. In addition to his ministry work, Clarence has spent the last 13 years as a trusted financial educator, guiding thousands of people across the country—including employees at many Fortune 500 companies—toward lasting financial wellness. His unique ability to blend practical wisdom with spiritual insight equips people to thrive in every area of life.

He is the author of The Pursuit of Purpose, which helps readers understand how God leads them into his will, and the author of The Pursuit of Victory: How To Conquer Your Greatest Challenges and Win In Your Christian Life. Clarence is also committed to helping 10,000 people learn how to study the Bible and has released his first course, Bible Study Basics, to achieve that goal. To learn more about his ministry and resources, please visit clarencehaynes.com.

Now that you've prayed, are you in need of someone to pray for YOU? Click the button below!