The other afternoon turned into a no-good, very bad day.

A couple of my boys fought with each other, several times an hour. They lashed out repeatedly and required me to stop what I was doing (mostly homeschooling) too many times for another calm conversation about what was going on in their hearts.

By the end of the day, I threw in a few not-so-calm conversations because I was over it. I was mad. I was venting.

But then I remembered the song that started my day, words which rose as a prayer from my heart~

“Holy Spirit, you are welcome here.

Come flood this place, and fill the atmosphere.

Your glory God is what our hearts long for,

To be overcome by your Presence, Lord.”

Francesca Battistelli, “Holy Spirit”

I stood before the sink, overcome with discouragement rather than overcome by the Presence of God. I didn’t even want to think about entering His presence. I felt like He was disappointed in me and the way I handled the boys.

Sometimes my failures get in the way of my faith.

Does this happen to you? Things are going sideways, and you’re making it so much worse. Instead of taking it to God, you want to hide from Him.

Then the devil cheers wildly (or he would, if he did that sort of thing). He’s been hoping to discourage you, and now he wants to keep you focused on your failures, your sins, your messes, to keep you thinking there’s no way out.

But the truth is, God knows us through and through, and He loves us still.

God invites us to come and draw near to His throne—always. Not only when we’re good—but when we need Him most.

Because of Jesus.

Let us then {fearlessly and confidently and boldly} draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy (for our failures) and find grace to help in good time for every need. Hebrews 4:16, AMP

Grace means we are invited to come before God with confidence—based on Jesus’ record, not our own behavior.

Although I’m always learning more of grace, I struggle to think in terms of grace.

From childhood, we’ve been learning an entirely different system. We’ve been learning we can have a treat—but only if we’re good. We’ve been learning we’ll be rewarded for doing good and punished for doing bad. School days taught us that. Even Santa taught us that.

But Grace says, draw near to God through Jesus Christ, because Jesus stands in as our high priest, making a way for us to come to God.

Because of His grace, we come without fear into God’s presence—in humble freedom, at liberty, unedited.

At the throne of Grace, we find our faithfully compassionate God, handing out mercy to cover over our failures, giving us grace to encourage us, to grow us, and to help us stay away from sin.

So don’t let your failures interfere with your faith. Approach the throne of grace and find mercy. Come with confidence, based on what Jesus has done for you—not what you deserve.

As the song ends, “Let us become more aware of Your presence! Let us experience the glory of Your goodness!”

Amen? Amen!!!