Hey Deacon!

Every time we attend Mass; we receive God’s grace and blessings. We receive sanctifying grace when we receive a sacrament and in the case of Mass, it is the Holy Eucharist. And at the end of Mass, we receive the blessing from the priest prior to being sent forth to live out the gospel message. But exactly what is the difference between grace and blessings? 

The Catholic Church teaches that there are two types of grace: sanctifying grace and actual grace. Sanctifying grace stays in the soul. It’s what makes the soul holy; it gives the soul supernatural life. More properly, it “is” supernatural life. Actual grace, by contrast, is a supernatural push or encouragement. It’s transient. It doesn’t live in the soul but acts on the soul from the outside. It’s more of a supernatural kick in the pants. Actual graces are those daily gifts from God that act on the soul if we let them. 

God gives us ‘supernatural pushes and encouragement’ all the time and not just at Mass. But we need to be open to them. Unless we keep our life centered on God every day, we will fail to receive His valuable aid (grace) on our journey towards Heaven. And that is a terrible shame. 

A blessing is defined as God’s favor and protection. The concept of blessings is found throughout the bible. Blessings are seen as a public declaration of relationship with God. In the Old Testament, to be blessed is to be granted special favor by God with resulting joy and prosperity. In the New Testament, however, the emphasis is more on spiritual rather than on material blessings. 

We tend to see the good things in our lives as proof that God favors us, and the bad things as proof that we’ve fallen out of favor with Him. But as we see above, we should look for spiritual blessings, not just material ones – and that includes when something ‘bad’ happens to us. (God is pretty good at making lemonade out of life’s lemons.) 

God is constantly trying to bestow His graces and blessings upon us. The easiest way to increase both in our daily lives is to be open and aware of their presence. Remember that one thing I mentioned about praying unceasingly --- ‘to rejoice always and give thanks to God’. When we stay connected to God throughout the day, His actual grace will surround us.

You will be amazed to discover a daily abundance of grace when you take the time to listen to God’s guiding voice inside you. Watch for the times when He helps you follow His will, and you’ll recognize the richness of His blessings upon you.

“We give Thee thanks, Almighty God, for all thy benefits. Who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen”
Author Bio:
 Deacon Dan Vaughn