Some things seem to last forever and never run out. You can always seem to get a little more out of them.

About two weeks ago I put toothpaste on the grocery list because I was running out.

I actually thought that I was going to squeeze the last out of the tube before we made a grocery run, but every day for the last two weeks there’s still been just a little more in the tube – just enough for one more brushing.

And every day I’ve thought that this was the last, but I keep getting enough for one more.

It’s like overnight it manufactures more toothpaste – not a lot mind you, but just enough for the next time I clean my teeth.

It’s like the Energizer bunny on the commercials; it just keeps going and going and going.

I have a razor that takes a battery and that thing lasts forever, too.

Oil also has that same characteristic. Have you ever put oil in your car and had to wait for the bottle to empty so you could cap the oil spout and get on your way?

You could stand there for ten minutes and there would still be a tiny stream of oil coming from that bottle.

It’s like the Old Testament story when the prophet told the widow to have her sons collect jars to put oil in. She kept pouring oil into the jars until she ran out of jars.

Finally the oil stopped flowing.

That was a miracle … even though it followed the pattern of how oil works.

I will tell you one thing that doesn’t have this forever principle and that is gas in your gas tank.

I’ve tested the theory out several times in my life and you can get the needle on the gas tank pretty low, usually even below the last mark on the gauge.

But if you push it, you’re going to run out of gas.

Probably the worst time that happened to me was about 9 pm one night when I was coming home from visiting a family. It was pouring rain and I ran out of gas on a fairly busy street.

I had to call home and have my son come to the rescue with a can of gas. … I got the impression that he was not too happy about it, especially about pouring the gas into the tank while getting seriously soaked.

But toothpaste keeps going. Today is the last morning I will be using this tube, but before I throw it in the garbage I’m going to see if I can squeeze one more dab out of it.

It’s not that I’m all that miserly when it comes to toothpaste. I don’t really think about it and hence, that’s why I’m still wringing out the last little blob.

… which gets me thinking, “How do they get toothpaste in there in the first place?” That’s a whole other blog post.

Here’s the thing: The grace of God works much the same way. When you think that you have run out of God’s favour, when you think that God couldn’t possibly forgive you, or have anything to do with you, there is just enough grace for that time. Don’t ever give up or look elsewhere; you can always find grace when you seek Him authentically.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: When have you received unexpected grace? Leave your comments below.