Ribbon of Grace

(with “Grace Greater Than Our Sin,” Music: Daniel B. Towner, Lyrics: Julia H. Johnston)

Music and Lyrics: Steve Hickok

Arranged by Edwin M. Willmington

(Chorus) String me on the ribbon of grace. I wanna be holy, I wanna be holy.

String me on the ribbon of grace. I wanna be holy, I wanna be holy.

Your love is limitless, it covers me. All that You say and do has set me free.

I’m thankful that You always see me down here.

No matter where I go, You’ll always be near.

My sin is buried in the deepest place.

Shower me with Your grace. Shower me with Your grace.

Some day in heaven I will see Your face. A holy, holy place. Holy, holy place.

Grace, grace, O God’s grace, Grace that will pardon and cleanse within.

O, O grace, grace, Yes, it’s God’s great grace, Grace that is greater than all our sin!

Read Joshua 2:1-21.

A slight breeze drifted through the doorway, bringing with it the scent of the fire burning in the courtyard brazier. Jotham leaned against the wall and secretly watched his daughter from the shadows of the entrance. Abigail was such a serious, industrious child, and yet she had a wonderful whimsical creativity, he thought. Even now as he watched, she was bent over the table, carefully stringing beads on a scarlet ribbon. Jotham sighed as he watched Abigail hold up the string, examining the arrangement of beads, shaking her head and pulling off several to rearrange them in an order perfect to her eye. He smiled as his thoughts turned to that day when she entered this world, that day when God had strung another bead of grace on the ribbon of his life. Yes, they had been right to name her Abigail—the father is joyful. They had waited so long for another child, had begged a shower of God's grace just one more time. Shower of grace. The phrase stuck in his head, and he heard the voice of his grandmother long in the past, telling a wide-eyed young boy about a God who refused to limit His grace to the mere requests of His children.

As he stared unseeing at the swirl of red ribbon resting on the table, Jotham's mind turned inward to the picture of a young lad resting on the knee of his grandmother and hearing the amazing story of another scarlet ribbon which wove its way through another accounting of grace. His heart tightened as he recalled the risks Rahab had taken in aiding those scouts of the advancing army. And yet, in hearing her tell the story, the only risk that existed would be a lack of trust in the obvious power and sovereignty of the God of Israel. "For how else is it possible that one as shameful as I could be adopted into the family of the Most High? One day you will understand that it took a power more awesome and a love more pure to make clean this old women, than all the might and miracles He bestowed to fight and win our beloved land." Jotham remembered how she always brought out a tattered and faded cord of scarlet, gently stroking it as it lay in her lap while she told him the salvation story of her youth. And always, she ended their times together with an admonition to holiness and righteousness that he too might be woven into the tapestry of God's plan.

With a jolt, Jotham came back to the present and the questioning look of his daughter, as he realized he had been nodding a response to the strong recollections of his long absent grandmother. Taking a deep breath, he stepped out of the doorway with purpose, calling to his daughter. It was time to tell her about the wonders of that scarlet ribbon and to join together the ribbon of the past with the ribbon of the future that God's holy tapestry would be continued to completion.

Food for Thought:

In Joshua 2:9-11, Rahab shares that she and her people have seen the power of God work in the lives of His people. How would you relate these verses to your own life?

What thoughts and encouragements concerning the ribbon of grace God has woven do you receive from the following verses?

Exodus 35:35; Joshua 6:25; Ezekiel 34:25-26; Hebrews 11:31;

Romans 6:18,22; Galatians 4:28; Ephesians 1:7-8a

What event in your life most exemplifies to you how God has tied you into the scarlet thread, or ribbon of grace, that is His plan? Who will you tell your story they they may receive the knowledge of the unbroken ribbon of grace that began before time and will continue to eternity?

Cross References:

Exodus 35:35...He has filled them with skill to perform every work of an engraver and of a designed and of an embroiderer, in blue and in purple and in scarlet material, and in fine linen, and of a weaver, as performers of every work and makers of designs.

Joshua 6:25...However, Rahab the harlot and her father's household and all she had, Joshua spared; and she has lived in the midst of Israel to this day, for she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

Ezekiel 34:25-26...And I will make a covenant of peace with them and eliminate harmful beasts from the land, so that they may live securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing. And I will cause showers to come down in their season; they will be showers of blessing.

Romans 6:18,22...and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness...But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life.

Galatians 4:28...And you brethren, like Isaac, are children of promise.

Ephesians 1:7-8a...In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us.

Philippians 1:4...just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.

Hebrews 11:31...By faith, Rahab the harlot did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace.

James 2:25...And in the same way was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works, when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?

All lyrics reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—except for local church use only, without the prior permission of Kimberly H. Shoup.

shoups@ifriendly.com

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