The 2011 film, Tree of Life opens with a one of my favorite dialogs. Here it is:
Brother.
Mother.
It was they who led me to Your door.
The nuns taught us there are two ways through life. The way of nature and the way of grace.
You have to choose which one to follow.
Grace doesn’t try to please itself. Accepts being slighted, forgotten, disliked. Accepts insults and injuries.
Nature only wants to please itself. Get others to please it too. Likes to lord it over them. To have its own way. It finds reasons to be unhappy. When all the world is shinning around it. And love is smiling through things.
They taught us that no one who loves the way of grace ever comes to a bad end.
I will be true to You.
Whatever comes.
Many times I read these 122 words for wisdom, only to find myself in, “The Way of Nature.”
So I made adjustments to match my thoughts, words and actions with “The Way of Grace.”
For some people, spirituality suits their character; for me it tames my character.
At first the adjustments, really suck.
Then they blow.
Then they get hard.
But I can assure you, The Way is Nature is suckier and harder and really blows.
About two thousand years ago, if you wanted to know how to live The Way of Grace, you read the Didache, [DID-ah-kee or DID-ah-kay]. The Didache was highly regarded by early Christian authors and theologians; it was included in the Biblical canon until 692AD. Even now, followers of Jesus of any kind, will benefit from this booklet and its practical advice on living.
The way of nature or the way of grace.
With every thought, word or action we choose one or the other.