The Significance of Grace
Brother John Mabry III
It was the spring of 2017. I was at work one day and it was time for me to go on break. A coworker and I happened to be on break at the same time, and as we prepared to eat I stopped talking mid-sentence, closed my eyes, and said my grace. By the time I opened my eyes and finished my sentence she was looking at me, obviously taken aback.
My coworker then said that while she did not think that I was a prayerful man, she realized that would finally make sense based on what she’d observed about me – the fact I am not like the other workers who cannot keep to themselves or maintain their professionalism when they are angry at work. She noticed that I conducted myself in a different manner when misfortunes arose. Instead of going on a tantrum and cussing like the others, we shared that I keep on working, and in minutes, my demeanor is as though nothing ever happened.
Another time that saying grace has also been significant to me was when I was with a group of friends. Only two of us in the group regularly go to church and say grace over our food. The group had gone out to eat and as the food came to the table, I and the other church goer started to say our grace; no one else did, but carried on the conversations at the table and looked at us like we were the oddballs. But later as we continued to eat in each other’s company more, I realized the quieter it got when it came time to pray over the food. Conversations were forced to stop until grace was over. Over time, others started to say their own grace and the morals of even saying grace were no longer a question.
As a kid, I was afraid of saying grace in public unless I was with my family. In my younger mind, not saying grace in public was a way to not draw attention to oneself or be judged. Often times, when the other kids found out or remembered that I was a Christian, they would single me out or try to make me feel funny about my religion even though they professed themselves to be Christians as well. Now that I’m grown up, I know saying grace shouldn’t make me feel like the odd one out. Not only that, people are always watching what I do, so even when I get the wrath of a customer or boss I know by the grace of God that I have grace as well. The more that I think about it the more I have to credit the teachings and behavioral constraints of my family and church family that have been rooted in me since I was a little kid. It has taught me the significance of grace.