Drop the Scorecard – Give the Grace You Want

Read The Daily:
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” – Ephesians 4:32

Post by Eric Maloney

For nearly three years, I was in a relationship that on the surface appeared to be well on track—until the day everything shifted. My ex had uprooted her life to move to the village South Point from hours away, and while we both struggled with the transition, I was often overwhelmed by the feeling that I was giving up too much of what I had known. Then one weekend, as we prepared for a trip, her phone buzzed relentlessly on the bathroom sink until it tumbled in. I grabbed it to save it, only to discover messages from another man that shattered the trust between us. Have you ever found yourself secretly tallying up every misstep, each new grievance deepening the wound?

That revelation ignited a storm of anger, tears, and less than admirable words. In the months that followed, our home turned into a battleground where I kept an ever-growing scorecard of every hurt. I began to notice that every argument, every reminder of the betrayal, only fueled more resentment, making it impossible to remember the good times we once shared. One particularly challenging night, amid a fight that felt like it would never end, I reached my boiling point—I snapped an iPhone in half, shattering not just glass but the heavy weight of my own bitterness. In that heated moment, as I looked at a thousand dollars worth of destruction, I realized that clinging to every hurtful moment had been keeping me captive. I forgave myself for holding onto that scorecard, understanding that if God forgave freely, shouldn’t I also let go?

If God forgave me freely, shouldn’t we also do the same?

Years later, I learned that my ex had passed away—a final closure that really left me no room for unfinished grudges. Though I never got the chance to offer her grace in person, I chose to view our time together as a lesson. I acknowledged that we simply weren’t right for each other, and that experience ultimately led me to the right place and the right people in my life. Now, I see it as a reminder that holding onto a scorecard only robs us of peace, while letting go gives us a path for true grace.

How might your life change if you chose grace over keeping score?

Prayer for the Day

God what are you  showing me?  What am I going to do about it?
God help me to see one person that I can serve through a kind word, random act of kindness, or simple gift today?
Make sure you complete the reading or comment today.

Read The New Testament In A Year

4 x 6 Plan | Read: John 17:1-19 & 1 Corinthians 1:18-31

After saying all these things, Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you. For you have given him authority over everyone. He gives eternal life to each one you have given him. And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth. I brought glory to you here on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. Now, Father, bring me into the glory we shared before the world began. “I have revealed you to the ones you gave me from this world. They were always yours. You gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything I have is a gift from you, for I have passed on to them the message you gave me. They accepted it and know that I came from you, and they believe you sent me. “My prayer is not for the world, but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. All who are mine belong to you, and you have given them to me, so they bring me glory. Now I am departing from the world; they are staying in this world, but I am coming to you. Holy Father, you have given me your name; now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are. During my time here, I protected them by the power of the name you gave me. I guarded them so that not one was lost, except the one headed for destruction, as the Scriptures foretold. “Now I am coming to you. I told them many things while I was with them in this world so they would be filled with my joy. I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. They do not belong to this world any more than I do. Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world. And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth.”   John 17:1-19

The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. As the Scriptures say, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.” So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense. But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength. Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God. God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the LORD.  1 Corinthians 1:18-31

Read More – Bible Project Overviews: John, 1 Corinthians