My last Lessons Learned post was right before Christmas . . . I’ve been quietly stashing away the lessons.

Mom taught me “Learn the lesson. Forget how you learned it.” Her words have helped me so much over the last 50 years and I don’t want to forget these lessons and have to relearn them. Maybe one or two will speak to you.

One lesson reads: I must first do what I ask of others. It’s easier to give grace when I see how much I need it.

In my journal it was written like this: Before asking someone else to be introspective, examine yourself. All the questions you ask others, ask yourself first. You will find that it is easier to give grace when you recognize you need grace.

I ask a lot of questions. (I see my friends nodding their heads.) And there were questions at the end of each post in the “Her Legacy in HIStory” series in March. Before I wrote those for you, I had to sit with them myself. At times, I was disappointed with the answers I had to give myself. Other times, I realized my thinking or feeling was unbalanced or selfish. And there were times when I was surprised by growth I saw since the last time I looked at that area of my life. My own answers pointed out that I constantly need grace and mercy. I am still learning lessons – and I will be until the day I die.

Please know my questions are not meant to create anxiety or uneasiness in you. My hope is they would give you a little glimpse into your own heart, your own mind, your own life, your own circumstances so you can take a tiny inventory to see if anything could be a little different, a little better. My Lessons Learned are not to brag. Some of these lessons come at a great cost. They are recorded to help me remember the grace and mercy God has extended to me and the important things He has taught me. (I don’t want to have to repeat some of these lessons!)

The good news is that if you find yourself in a place where you need grace and mercy, God is always willing to help. All we have to do is ask. We all need God’s grace because we will misstep and we need His mercy and comfort when the lessons feel too hard to complete. He’s promised never to leave us. He loves us that much!!

Heavenly Father, Thank You for grace and mercy that covers our failures. Thank You for never saying, “That’s it! You’ve had enough!” Your patience, kindness, goodness, and lovingkindness is overwhelming!