About a week ago the kids and I were in a shopping center parking lot. It was extremely windy outside. I told London to wait for me to come help him get in the car.

He didn’t wait.

He opened his door and the wind smashed the door into the van next to our vehicle.

Ouch!!

I ran over to see the damages.

It was bad.

The impact left a significant dent in the van and took the paint off.

To make things worse, the owner of the van was sitting in her car on the phone as this all happened. I stood there embarrassed as she rolled down her window to assess the damages.

“I’m sooo sorry. Let me give you my information. I’ll take care of it.” – I told her.

While staying on her phone call, she looked at the damages, smiled, and said, “I’m not worried about it. It’s okay.”

She let us go scot-free.

I couldn’t believe it.

It’s been a week now and I still can’t believe a complete stranger showed me such grace. I’m completely stunned at her grace.

How could someone show such grace?

However, the question in my head the last couple days has changed to, “Why do I not have the same reaction to God’s grace?”

The grace that God shows me every day far outweighs the grace the lady in the parking lot showed me.

Why am I not shocked by God’s grace the same way I’m shocked when someone says I can leave scot-free after denting their car?

Why am I not dwelling on God’s grace the same way I’ve been dwelling on the grace this stranger showed me?

I know why.

I’ve become immune to God’s grace.

This is a scary thought – but it’s true.

How do I change?

How do I reset my mind on the reality of God’s grace in my life?

This reminds me of Paul’s letter to the Romans. In order for Paul to get the Romans to see their need for salvation he begins his letter by “painting the canvas black” – in order that the gem of the Gospel might stand out against the dark backdrop of human depravity.

In other words, Paul’s message on the grace of God wouldn’t have had the same impact if he had not first shown them how much they need grace.

White strokes of paint (God’s grace) against a darkly painted canvas (human depravity) portrays a much more impactful message.

This may sound dark and depressing, but I think the solution to my immunity of God’s grace is to dig deeper into the reality of my need for grace.

By looking at the reality of my depravity in the face, I’ll become blown away by the majesty of God’s grace.