Don’t Do That! Do THIS Instead

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4.16

As the process of sanctification progresses, we become more aware of our internal mechanisms and the way in which we re/act when under pressure. Although the traditional language of addiction/ addiction recovery is not something to which everyone can relate, the process of “using,” be it a substance or a process, as a response to stress, is something of which most of us have experience (whether conscious or not).

The thing that we use to escape the reality of our immediate circumstances, our still-in-process inner states, or the habitual feeling cycles that emerge from the latter and in response to the former, changes from person to person and from context to context.

In the end, it doesn’t really matter what it is. Our focus is not on the “drug” itself but on the (generally automatic and unconscious—at first) act of using something outside of ourselves, to regulate our inner state, whether a substance, a process or something else that is slightly harder to define.

Now, if we were thinking according to worldly logic, we would say that the antidote is not, in fact, in our drug of choice but is, instead, within us. As a result of the illumination that we have received through the divine grace of God that has begun pouring in our lives, however, we know that this is not true. We are fallen human beings. We do not have the means of saving ourselves. Christ, on the other hand, does. He is the Savior.

What we need to do, therefore, the next time that we find ourselves in a state of stress, distress or internal disarray (or any other condition that is at odds with the divine flow of God that harmoniously ripples through our lives in Christ), is to come to Christ’s throne of grace for healing: Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Hebrews 4.16).

What happens after we make that decision is a mystery that is directly revealed to each of us in our hearts, through the majestic work of the Holy Spirit. All that we need to do is come before the throne and offer up our death to Christ. He will take it from us and give us, in exchange, His life: He showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb (Revelation 22.1).

Tears might come. Let them. Cry. Weep. Wail. Let it out. Let it flow. Let it go. Before the throne of grace we are seen (Christ sees us—He is watching us) and before the throne of grace we are known (Christ, our Creator, knows who we are, He knows our history and He knows what we are going through). We are seen, known and loved by Christ Himself, who wants nothing more than for us to allow Him to heal us and to set us free.

When we gave our lives to Christ, one of the innumerable gifts that He gave us was a mystical account in the bank of God. This verse is like a supernatural credit card. We can use it to retrieve divine grace whenever we want. There is no limit to how much grace we can take out and there is no limit to how frequently we can use it. The grace is always available and the bank is always open. Do not, therefore, hesitate to come and make use of this wondrous treasure. You will not regret it!

Amen +

Author of You Are Mine and Apocalypse, Sister Anastasia writes on the role of the ancient, ascetic Church in a rapidly changing, modern world.

Photo by Liz Weddon on Unsplash