Grace for What Is Left Undone

When you lie in bed at night and go back over the day, what do you think of?

Maybe you replay conversations you had, review tasks you completed, or remember blessings that made you smile. Then at some point, you realize how much you didn’t do. No matter how productive you were and how much was finished, most likely, just as much (if not more) was left undone. 

If you’re anything like me, once you arrive at that section of your mental list, it’s easy to get stuck there. Soon you’re feeling overwhelmed as you start planning the day ahead, and when you wake up the next morning, you only have a few blissful seconds of peace before it all comes rushing in again.

This doesn’t just apply to everyday to-do lists. It’s easy to adopt a similar mindset toward your spiritual life. Do you ever feel like no matter how much you do, it’s not enough? Are you burdened under the weight of guilt over things you’re not doing but believe you should?

finding grace

For what we have done and left undone
We fall on Your countless mercies
For sins that are known and those unknown
We call on Your name so holy

— Aaron Keyes, James Tealy, Matt Boswell, and Matt Papa,
“Lord Have Mercy (For What We Have Done)”

When we examine ourselves in search of sins we’ve committed, it’s common to think of the obvious ones: actions that are contrary to the way God would have us live. We’re less likely to think of sins as things we haven’t done, but sometimes they are. As James 4:17 (ESV) clearly tells us, “So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”

Yet there is a line to be drawn here. Not every good deed left undone is a sin. After all, it is impossible for any one of us to single-handedly accomplish all of the good that could be done in this world. No matter how much we do to help and serve others, there will still be needs that remain unmet.

Does that sound discouraging? It could, depending on how you look at it. As a statement of our inadequacy, if we want to save the world ourselves, then yes, it’s terribly discouraging. But as a reminder of room for receiving God’s grace, it can lift our eyes heavenward to focus on the only One who can truly save the world.

trusting God

… “God doth not need
Either man’s work or his own gifts; who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state
Is Kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed
And post o’er Land and Ocean without rest:
They also serve who only stand and wait.”

— John Milton, “When I Consider How My Light Is Spent”

There will be seasons in your life when you can’t do as much as you once could. It may be due to physical factors such as sickness, chronic pain, or old age. It may be a consequence of circumstances outside your control that drain you of time and energy. Whatever the reason, sometimes you just can’t. And that’s hard to accept when you’re used to being someone who can. It’s a painful reminder that life is a long journey of letting go of things you once found worth in.

But what you can’t do, God can. What is more, He can use you just as you are, regardless of whether you are in a season of activity or a season of rest. It might feel like you’ve been set aside for a time, but the truth is that God is planting seeds in you that will one day bear fruit, and He is preparing qualities in you that you will need to put to use. You can be a field of peace no matter what season you’re in. 

growing in faith

It can be painful to say no, and strangely enough, it can even feel like dying to self. It takes real faith to depend on God to care for others when you cannot. 

— Kelly M. Kapic

When you relinquish things that you can no longer do—whether for a time or for the rest of your life—it offers an opportunity for others to step up and serve. God may be calling someone to take your place, but they won’t be able to do so until you step back. Holding on to something longer than you should can pose a hindrance to others’ growth (as well as your own). But choosing to take hold of grace and trust God by faith enables your spirit to bloom, and it makes room for others also. 

So as you lie in bed at night and revisit the day that is past, remember to receive God’s grace for what is left undone.