Bidden or Unbidden by Laurie Buchanan
University of Life – Divine Grace Course Description
Grace. We all have it. We’ve all been endowed with this innate gift. But what is it? Some say that it’s compassion or divine love; others say it’s the protection of God. I define it as the immediate presence of Spirit. One of my clients offers this definition, “Grace is the breath of God.”
The famous Latin writing, “Bidden or unbidden, God is present,” means that God is everywhere—not just with a select few—but with everyone in equal measure in the University of Life. We’re all here to gain understanding. Most of us learn by making mistakes. Some of us are taking basic courses; while others are in accelerated programs. Regardless of the level of difficulty, the classrooms have an ever-changing terrain. Having a strong and secure internal foothold—divine grace—helps us to stay the course.
If love is an act of compassion, then grace is divinity in action. The next time we see a person and think, “There but for the grace of God go I,” let’s put our divinity into action instead and be the immediate presence of Spirit for that individual; giving them a smile, a word of encouragement, or lending them a hand. Grace not given is grace lost.
“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.”
~ Laurie Buchanan
www.HolEssence.com
Copyright © 2010 Laurie Buchanan — All Rights Reserved.
Tuesdays with Laurie 
My words won’t be like your’s Laurie, but here are mine: LIFE IS A GIFT FROM GOD, and by his GRACE we go.(EVERY ONE)
Have a wonderful day. Love, Mona
Mona – You’re words are perfect!
Laurie,
Great course description ! “Divine Grace” Yes the grace of God working with you and through you.
My first reaction was to defend the saying “There but for the grace of God go I”. As a recovery drunk I learned this phrase there, and the saying is use to remind us when we see another person still struggle with the obsession of their dis-ease. The reminder is to inform those who now seem to have a grasp on there recovery that they through the Grace of God heard the still small voice from within and found a way to change their behavior.
It is not to look down on but to look up at God and be thankful that we listened. As well as to be that source of God’s voice by taking those still in the struggle of addictions under their wing, or embrace of compassion and understanding so that they too can “hear” The Grace of God.
So my reaction turned to understanding, that I learned that lesson, and I have the ability to “teach” this class!
I am Love, Jeff
Jeff – Step up to he front and teach the class, sir. You do, indeed, get it.
Perfect. Immediate. Exact. Thank you!
Sandi – I’m glad you stopped by, friend. I hope your day was great!
Hello Laurie. I’ve been thinking a lot about grace lately. What it really is, how to know it in my own life. Caroline Myss sugessts that it needs to be experienced… recognized by the individual from within. I appreciate very much your thougts and I love the idea of grace being divinity in action. Thank you.
Colleen – Thank you for visiting Speaking from the Heart. I’m a fan of Caroline Myss (Anatomy of the Spirit is my favorite book of hers). I appreciate your comment, please stop by again.
grace = “the immediate presence of Spirit”
sweet laurie! great blog
DiamondLil – That is precisely what grace has been in my life — the immediate presence of Spirit. I’m glad for your visit, thank you! Please come again.
The grace of God and seeing the divinity in ourselves and others. I really feel this is the basis of our life here on this wonderful planet. To see the grace of God in ourselves and also to show others my ouractions that they too are divine grace.
In my now life I think I have a better time seeing the grace in others and encountering that for my own self, however I think a number of times I forget that I too am that divine grace as well. I too have been blessed as a child of God, to be gracefully blessed for this world and the next.
It is a struggle that I probably have had my whole life, even as a cradle Catholic. It is difficult to distinguish the ever loving God with the judging, defiant, strong powerful God. That discipline is not usually easily distinguished and equally confusing. That man can be his greatest friend or his greatest enemy is also a sad conclusion that grieves me so, as I can sometimes, no a lot become my greatest judge, critic, jury, and punshment. Rather than becoming comfort, caring, forgiving, and loving to myself, which I am usually lavishing on others.
Great food for thought Laurie and it is Broccoli!LOL
Kim – I’ll take broccoli as a huge compliment. It’s very healthy and I eat it every day. Thank you for your visit — I’ll see you tomorrow.
Yep I read this earlier. Very enlightening! YEAH DANG IT LEND SOMEONE A HELPING HAND!!!
Ok I need to now go lend my hand at buying my 3rd bottle of cough medicine in a week and a present for my one year old grand nephew. I’m Granny B too!!! hahahahaha and stuff to make a pasta salad. Already tested the waters, they still want my sick coughing person at their house tomorrow! They’re just not letting me near the baby. But alas, me and babies don’t mix anywho. hee hee cough cough cough…
Oh Beth – I’m sorry that you’re sick. Deep breathe steam (tent your head with a towel over a stock pot of steaming water). You can add a drop of tea trea oil that will help loosen things up even more. If you don’t have that, put in a teaspoon of Vick’s Vapor rub; it’s got camphor and menthol. Just make sure to keep your eyes closed while you’re deep breathing. In through your nose for 3-minutes (then come up for fresh air); and then in through your mouth for three minutes (then come up for fresh air). The steam will go into all of the nooks and crannies in your respiratory system and kill the bacteria.
Side benefit — great facial!
All – I was just asked via email where I took this photograph. For of all, it was taken with a little Canon Elph camera. My husband and son are standing on either side of me and to this day, it’s quite possibly the most remarkable experience the three of us have experienced together. We climbed Ben Nevis (Scotland) — the highest point in the British Isles.
Did any of the rest of you receive an email from Matt at WordPress announcing the “Surprise Me” (fun mode) button that we can activate on our Personal Settings page? I found it and checked it. We’ll see what happens …
It took me a while as I am about as dumb as a stump and kept looking at the bottom of the page without thinking it would be listed FIRST. Duh.
Barbara – I’m glad you found it. Let me be the first to say, loud and clear, that you are not “dumb” in any way. Especially in light of the fact that our two minds tend to be in the same track quite often. You’ve heard the adage, “What we think about, we bring about.” With that as the premise, let me say here and now, I think we’re brilliant!
Okay, this is downright scary. Yesterday, while I was out shopping with January, we saw a young man in a wheelchair who obviously had cerebral palsy or another sort of physiological compromise. And I thought those exact words “There but for the grace of God go I.” My next thought, though, said “I don’t know that God chose that existence for him” followed closely by remembering that I while I would not choose physical incapacity as a way of life, I would not want to be anyone else except me. I would like to believe that young man feels the same. He might prefer a different set of physical circumstances, but he would want to remain who he is.
Babara – I could almost hear the soundtrack for “The Twilight Zone” playing in the background as I read your comment. That is downright scary. That goes hand-in-hand with my reading your post this morning, Buddha Presence, when you were talking about your granddaughter, January, and you said, “… her teaching lies in her behavior as a human being in this world.” Let me tell you the soundtrack volume went up quite a bit as I’m getting ready to post my blog today on “Living Meditation” and I mention the very same thing in different words. Yowza — we must be tapped into the same grid of the Collective Conscious.