"Grace That Comes First" (Day 38)
Verse of the Day
“We love because he first loved us.” — 1 John 4:19
I often think of life as a long, winding road. Some stretches were bright and clear. Others were broken and covered in fog. But looking back, I can see this now—God’s grace was reaching for me long before I ever turned back.
I first knew faith as a boy in Storrs, Connecticut. For a few years, the church was alive to me—full of joy, Scripture, and a sense that God was near. My mother made sure we were there. At the time, I didn’t know it, but God was planting something deep.
Then, at fifteen, everything fell apart. My father left. Our family unraveled. We left the church, and I drifted. What started as pain turned into decades of wandering. From fifteen to fifty, I lived without direction. I built a career, but my life felt empty. Two marriages ended. Depression settled in. I had lost my way.
But God had not lost me.
It began quietly. An old Bible in the attic. Another Bible I couldn’t throw away. A book from my mother. Then a neighbor offering a Bible he almost tossed. I started reading. Then studying. The Psalms spoke to me. The Epistles guided me. Slowly, something in me came alive again.
Still, I hesitated to return to church. I felt unworthy. But I kept praying. Just one simple prayer: “God, send me somewhere I can serve.”
And he answered. I drove to Houlton. I walked into a church, unsure. But I was welcomed. Given a place. Given a community. I was home again.
Now I see it clearly. I didn’t find my way back on my own. God came first. God loved first. God reached first. – Rob Victor
Thought for the Day
Where have you seen quiet signs of God reaching out to you—even in seasons when you were far from Him—and how will you respond to that grace today?
“We love because he first loved us.” — 1 John 4:19
I often think of life as a long, winding road. Some stretches were bright and clear. Others were broken and covered in fog. But looking back, I can see this now—God’s grace was reaching for me long before I ever turned back.
I first knew faith as a boy in Storrs, Connecticut. For a few years, the church was alive to me—full of joy, Scripture, and a sense that God was near. My mother made sure we were there. At the time, I didn’t know it, but God was planting something deep.
Then, at fifteen, everything fell apart. My father left. Our family unraveled. We left the church, and I drifted. What started as pain turned into decades of wandering. From fifteen to fifty, I lived without direction. I built a career, but my life felt empty. Two marriages ended. Depression settled in. I had lost my way.
But God had not lost me.
It began quietly. An old Bible in the attic. Another Bible I couldn’t throw away. A book from my mother. Then a neighbor offering a Bible he almost tossed. I started reading. Then studying. The Psalms spoke to me. The Epistles guided me. Slowly, something in me came alive again.
Still, I hesitated to return to church. I felt unworthy. But I kept praying. Just one simple prayer: “God, send me somewhere I can serve.”
And he answered. I drove to Houlton. I walked into a church, unsure. But I was welcomed. Given a place. Given a community. I was home again.
Now I see it clearly. I didn’t find my way back on my own. God came first. God loved first. God reached first. – Rob Victor
Thought for the Day
Where have you seen quiet signs of God reaching out to you—even in seasons when you were far from Him—and how will you respond to that grace today?
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