“She carries a pearl
In perfect condition
What once was hurt
What once was friction
What left a mark
No longer stings
“Because Grace makes beauty
Out of ugly things
“Grace finds beauty
In everything
“Grace finds goodness
In everything.” – U2, Grace
Grace is one of those elusive things. We say we want it, we kind of get it in a indefinable sort of way, and yet it can be hard to grasp, like trying to catch a cloud. We all need grace to get through this life, to get through this day, and grace comes from God, an unearned gift just for being God’s beloved. But we kind of have to want it and seek it and watch for it, or we’re very likely to miss it when it’s in our midst.
The words to the U2 song above were new to me when I heard them two days ago. 
(Thank you, Dennis, for sharing this lesser-known U2 song with me.) Grace seems more urgent to me as I get older. I even wear the word “grace” (over there on the right) around my neck every day (Thank you, Cathy A.), along with my Om symbol (no commentary on that, please) and my alpha and omega cross with the Chi Rho in the middle. For me it’s a lovely trifecta — grace, the mystical sound of the divine, and the reminder that Jesus Christ is our beginning and our end.
As we enter into the high holy days this week, the Triduum that will take us through absolute darkness and desperation to ultimate light and salvation, don’t forget to look for the grace present in your life right now. If you can find grace, you, too, will be able to see beauty in everything, even the cross of Good Friday, even the cross in your life today, whatever it may be.
Here’s one of my favorite lines of this song, a line that can slip by unnoticed (like grace) if you’re not paying attention: “She travels outside of karma…” Contemplate that this morning. Grace travels outside of karma. Grace does not punish or seek an eye for an eye. Grace heals, grace saves, grace loves – always.
“Because grace makes beauty out of ugly things.”
Here’s the YouTube video so you can hear the whole thing:
