“So spacious is he, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe – people and things, animals and atoms – get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross.” Colossians 1:18-20 The Message

Grace-Gripped started 7 years ago writing to some friends about living life with Jesus. It has had several names that reflected a season or part of that journey but Grace-Gripped has been the walking and working name of living everyday in the reality of Christ. The truth about all of us is that we are all broken and dislocated in places. It doesn’t always look the same or happen the same way, but we share a very common birthright of broken .. sin-infected .. sin-weary .. and sin-scarred lives. Underneath all of this is a working truth or “life-glue” that God is good. We live in a fallen world that doesn’t always reflect His goodness and our own struggles .. stubbornness .. and short-sightedness cause us to lose focus from time to time. But greater than your struggles is the true reality that Jesus is indeed so spacious and roomy that your life in any condition will find room to heal .. become whole .. and truly alive in Christ. Is it that simple .. really? Yes .. I think it is. It’s simple enough to be dismissed as irrelevant. It’s simple enough to be distorted as narrow and judgmental. It’s even simple enough to be discounted as ancient and absent of real power. Simple …? … Except by those whose lives have been found and put back together in Him. You discover that it wasn’t you that put you back together. You begin to see fingerprints and nail-scarred impressions all through your life. You realize they have been there long before you ever recognized the first print of God’s grace in your life. To this end .. I am suspending Grace-Gripped while I complete writing (hopefully) (The JesusLife: Learning to Love the Life that Jesus is Living in Me). Many of the G-G’s over the years have contained parts of this story. It is my hope and prayer to write about this Life that Jesus wants to live in us. It’s that simple… I hope to resume writing Grace-Gripped in the near future. And I truly ask for your prayers as I walk forward in Christ .. with Christ .. and for Christ. It only takes a moment … it’s that simple .. really!

“The mystery in a nutshell is just this: Christ is in you, so therefore you can look forward to sharing in God’s glory. It’s that simple.” Colossians 1:27 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped has been sent M-F to Grace-Infected Followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“Are you tired? Worn out? BUrned out on religion?. Come to Me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me … watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matt. 11:28-30 The Message

There isn’t anything confusing about the life and the direction Jesus will lead in you. He will and does lead you on the outside but the deepest strength of His words are the indwelling promise of giving you a life filled with grace .. a good fit .. and a life lived lightly and freely. It doesn’t mean life will become easy. It means that Jesus wants to show you how to take a rest .. how to walk alongside Him .. and how to work in a grace-less world with a grace-filled life. You’ll stand out with anyone else who has stopped living your life on this world’s terms and conditions. But still … Jesus offers you His life. He already knows how much is demanded from your life. His promise is a life that will “fit” you. It’s His offer. Jesus isn’t going to demand for you to change. In fact He informs us of just the opposite: a life following Him will “learn” just what grace demands. And your life today…? It only takes a moment …

“Every person the Father gives me eventually comes running to me. And once that person is with me, I hold on and don’t let go. I came down from heaven not to follow my own whim but to accomplish the will of the One who sent me.” John 6:37-38 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to the Tired .. Worn Out .. and Burned Out who discover that life with Jesus is unforced.

Jesus came to find you. He knows how this world works with its formulas and self-prescribed agendas to end up on top. He’s never been impressed with how high your life could rise but by how far you will go to reach another life .. to risk rejection by offering His love .. to see life through His eyes and serve another person in His name. David was a God-hearted man who learned how to worship when his life collapsed. He discovered that God was already there ready to pick him .. put him back together .. and pour in His fresh-starting .. clean-slating love. He’s that way for you today. It’s not your performance that the Lord is after. It’s your heart .. the real you that is unseen except by Him. And you get there by exhausting your life trying to not fail .. trying to be flawless or as near flawless as possible .. and living in control. But the God who remembers His covenant time and time again simply says to you: Don’t be afraid. I’ve redeemed you. You’re mine” He knows us all too well that fear lurks just below the surface out of sight. He didn’t redeem you when you thought you had it all together. It was exactly the opposite: He redeemed you when you were un-redeemable. No one else would claim you except the liars and darkness of this world. But God wanted you ready for love .. living in His presence .. learning to love the Life He has given you. How do you get in over your head? By looking at what’s in it for you .. not where is the Lord in this. If I do it well .. will He bless me? It’s not the position the Lord is after in your life. He’s after you and follows after you .. waiting for you when you are at the end of your rope .. and reminds you that your life is not a dead-end. He’s the Lord who opens a way where there is not a way. It’s so easy to live a distracted life. Jesus invites you to fix your eyes on Him. It’s His life that steps into your life and puts all those shattered pieces back together. It only takes a moment …

“Don’t be afraid. I’ve redeemed you. You’re mine. When you’re in over your head, you will not go down. When you’re between a rock and hard place, it won’t be a dead end–” Isaiah 43:2

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Heart-shattered into Whole-hearted followers of Jesus and friend of Priority One and friends of Priority One. (ken@priorityone.org)

Hey Grace-Grippers,
I am away until Monday and will not be writing for a few days. “May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine upon you. May the Lord lift up His countenance upon and give you peace”. It is one of the oldest blessings that we can share with each other everyday. While old … it yields the riches of God’s grace into every dry area of your life .. every ache .. every fear .. every longing .. every place where God’s gracious care for you is needed. There in the face of Jesus you will discover His grace keeping you in storms or in stillness. The Lord is coming soon … and until then it only takes a moment …

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Men and Women following .. trusting .. and serving Jesus.

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6 Holman Christian Standard

At first glance it may seem harsh that Jesus is limiting the path to a saving and new life in Christ. But in fact He is doing the very opposite. He’s opening each day of your life with an assurance so that you can live your life all out and all in to the glory of God. The results are in His hands. What Jesus says is that you will be connected with your heavenly Father and have the same kind of relationship He had on earth. Your life in Christ is lived through Jesus living His life in you. That happens through trust in who Jesus says that He is. Except-through-Christ is a grace filled statement of truth. Except-through-Christ is a promise for your life today with your heavenly Father. Except-through-Christ is deeply personal for you today for everything you do and everyone you meet. He is your access. It’s not up to your efforts. It’s not about your good intentions. It’s not about how much you have to gain access. It’s all about Who has you. That can be disturbing at times because even Christ-followers can be tempted to bypass or suspend the indwelling life of Christ and try to find godly answers without Him. Jesus doesn’t give us this option. He makes a way through His way. he leads in truth because He is the truth. And He offers life that begins with Him. Whatever you are facing today. Whoever is vying for your allegiance. Jesus offers you the wide-open door to the Father through himself.

“Salvation comes no other way; no other name has been or will be given to us by which we can be saved, only this one.” Acts 4:12 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Followers of The-No-Other-Name and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. … so that your faith might not be based on men’s wisdom but in God’s power.” 1 Cor. 2:2-5 Holman Christian Standard

To know Christ … To make Him known … To answer others with hope and grace … and To live your life in His Spirit in such a way that the only explanation is the Cross. The Cross of Jesus Christ opens your life to live freely in this world. The Cross doesn’t call you to live ignorantly or arrogantly. You’ve been called into a life that is identified by a Cross. The world around you wants you to keep that hidden and irrelevant in living your life. You aren’t called to be offensive in the way you live. It is the Cross ..and the Cross alone that is offensive to the wise and powerful and even the broken. We are all born trying to fix our own lives and make them something that will last forever. Boasting in the Cross is always a moment of grace .. shared with a friend or shared with a life hanging by a thread or even hopelessly lost .. but always with gentleness and respect. Sometimes it may look forceful. Sometimes it may look like a normal conversation. Sometimes it is just you sharing the “one-thing” you know is the perfect love for another life. Boasting in the Cross is not about being filled up but poured out for others. It usually is an interruption in the world’s patterns of fitting in or pleasing others. But it is always a gift that can never be repaid. And when you are rejected or humiliated … the Cross of Christ will set you free for the Life that Jesus is living in you. Nothing you face today is greater than the Cross of Christ. And as you begin this day … nothing is as easy as taking a moment in Him …

“For my part, I am going to boast about nothing but the Cross of our Master, Jesus Christ. Because of that Cross, I have been crucified in relation to the world, set free from the stifling atmosphere of pleasing others and fitting into the little patterns that they dictate.” Galatians 6:14 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Cross-Roaded Followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“Then they were amazed, so they began to argue with one another, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.” ” Mark 1:27

The life that Jesus wants to live in and through you is the very life that you long for: Life in His name .. lived through His authority … living in fellowship with the Father .. the Son .. and the Holy Spirit. Our first encounters with Jesus are like those who suffer driven-lives filled with guilt .. shame .. and heart and soul crushing burdens. You encounter this One named Jesus and you fear He has come to destroy you or drive you away from His Presence. Instead .. He does the absolute opposite. He speaks into the deepest places of your life. He speaks with power and authority combined with grace and truth. He speaks words where only His Spirit can reach inside. Jesus is bringing His Kingdom into the light and He’s bringing your life with Him. The life He offers you is unlike any other life available on earth. His life changes your identity and your new life is in His Name. And the name of Jesus often places us at crossroads of living “this” life and trying to find Him or living “His” life and following His ways. We are so quick to forget His promise: “I am with you always to the end of the age”. That happens when we become entangled in all the trappings and traps of this fallen world. It might be right for someone else to walk in a direction that for you becomes filled with burdens upon burdens … because it isn’t His life. OR you may face a life filled with burdens but they are carried by Jesus. In either case .. it is His life lived in His name that cleans out all the unclean places in you and frees you to love .. share .. and serve others in the authority of Jesus name. The life He offers you today comes with His promise …. it only takes a moment …

“Then Jesus came near and said to them, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always to the end of the age.” Matt. 28:18-20

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Name-bearing followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (Ken@priorityone.org)

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding; Think about Him in all your ways and He will guide you on the right paths.” Prov. 3:5-6 Holman Christian Standard

God knows that you were born with a predisposition to trust in yourself. He didn’t originally create you that way .. but it happened. You may have well-developed skills to examine and weigh options and choices. You may not have those skills and yet the both of “you” are inclined to trust your own thinking over God. But the Lord who is “gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and abounding in love and faithfulness” has continued through generations to call each us back to Himself as the true foundation of our trust. He does so by telling each us that he will “guide us on the right path”. Not only that .. but we are renewed .. restored .. and strengthened when we place our trust in living our lives in Christ. Our conflict arises when “we” want a path that seems at odds with the path God is leading us upon. So we wrestle back and forth trying to convince the Lord that our intentions are good and truthfully we really don’t know very much about being good. We like to think that we do .. but our faith history is littered with brokenness and barren lives of trying to live independently from the Lord. The oldest of all the Psalms begins with this timeless truth: “Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, and His love endures forever.” Jesus lived this truth in front of our eyes. He lived a life of complete trust in the Father’s faithfulness. And He offers each of us this same life in Himself … a life of trust grounded at the Cross … and empowered by His indwelling resurrected life. “All your heart” is who you are and what you trust. “All you ways” is how you live and who you trust to guide your heart and guide your hands and feet. God doesn’t hide His promises. He has promised to guide your life on right paths .. paths of righteousness .. truth .. justice .. grace .. forgiveness .. and redemption. Without Him is a life of confusion-filled weariness that finds comfort in things and not faith. The life that Jesus Christ offers you is for right now … with everything you are carrying at this moment .. and with everything He promises he will be and do in your life. It only takes a moment …

“but those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength …” Isaiah 40:31- Holman Christian Standard

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Trust-gripping followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“In Him we were also made His inheritance …” Ephesians 1:11 Holman Christian Standard

It’s true .. you are Christ’s inheritance. Everything that He has ever done or created and He choses you as His inheritance. We are reminded during difficult times that we have an inheritance beyond our wildest imaginations and yet we forget that “we” are Christ’s inheritance. Your life is a daily and sometimes very public display that the grace of God is “guaranteed to last”. It doesn’t mean you’re perfect. You might even wonder what it is that the Lord sees in you worth any kind of inheritance. He sees your life .. ransomed .. paid up .. “never-out-of date .. never obsolete and rustproof”. What Jesus sees in you is a life being made honest and true and that is invaluable in God’s eyes. So He takes all the time he needs to work this treasure into your life. We’re used to instant and sudden changes and it is frustrating when the Lord seems to be deliberate and determined in shaping your life according to his plans. Christ looks at your life and declares .. celebrates .. and remembers what it took to change you from being unworthy to being of immeasurable worth. That in itself should be enough but it takes even more. He guarantees His work in you and seals you with His Holy Spirit who is continually reminding you that your life is to bring glory and honor to Jesus. We are to be a singularly focused family belonging to Christ and his purposes. His life alone in the center of all that we are or possess reveals how we are living: for Christ or ourselves hoping to be blessed for our efforts. Sometimes the line between the two is hardly distinguishable. You need his help everyday. He is indeed “never out of date” in an almost always out of date world trying to convince you to set your own course and seek your own path. When Jesus looks at your life today he sees his inheritance and he knows you were and are worth every cross-raised and grave-emptying moment. What’s on your schedule today? It only takes a moment to check on Christ’s schedule in you …

“He remembered to keep his ancient promise. He proved to his people that he could do what he said: Hand them the nations on a platter — a gift! He manufactures truth and justice; All his products are guaranteed to last — Never out-of-date, never obsolete, rust-proof. All that he makes and does is honest and true. He paid the ransom for his people, He ordered his Covenant kept forever.” Psalm 111:5-9 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Unbelievable Inheritances following Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“I have been crucified with Christ; and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Galatians 2:20 Holman Christian Standard Bible

The secret of the Christian life is: “learning to love the Life that Christ is living in me”. In you: Christ is living the same life he lived 2000 years ago. In you: Christ is living the same life that raised him from the dead. In you: Jesus is living his risen life. Jesus said he could only do what he saw his Father doing. And Jesus prayed that you would have the same life that he had with his Father. He hasn’t left you to try to figure out how to live the Christ-filled life. He is your life and He has promised to never forsake you. There are any number of situations or circumstances when you may feel alone .. abandoned .. and alienated. His great gift to you is that you no longer have to live out of your own strength. Christ is your strength. We are pressured in this fallen and flawed world to trust ourselves and ask God’s help when we’ve exhausted our own resources. It is a lie! Jesus has promised to abide in you .. make His home in you .. and complete in you the work He finished on the Cross. And there is so much more. His forgiveness is absolute. His grace is life-changing .. and His Life is your shield .. your hope .. your restoring love .. your indwelling joy .. your any-moment help .. your truth-filled light .. your overcoming grace .. your Name above all names and greater than all temptations .. your true desire .. your true home .. your true life .. and All that you need and hope for today and forever. There are “false lords” but there is only One who loved you and gave His life for you. None can stand up against the light of His grace and truth. None can offer you a “fresh start and a clean slate”. None can bring you out of darkness and transform your life into unceasing praise. But this Jesus is the One who lives in you by faith and makes your life worth living. He only takes a moment …

“I assure you: The Son is not able to do anything on His own, but only what He sees the Father doing. For the Father loves the Son and shows Him everything He is doing, and He will show Him greater works than these so that you will be amazed.” John 5:19-20 Holman Christian Standard Bible

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Alive-in-Christ Ones and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)