Moralistic Therapeutic Deism has crept into the theology of many people in our culture and our congregations. From this framework people see God as one who wants them to play nice with others, one who wants us to be happy and content with our lives, and one who keeps a safe distance from our lives and our world. Operating out of this theology, people ignore their experience of grace. Grace is the undeserved, unearned, unmerited enduring gift from God that can fill us to the point in which it overflows into the lives of those around us. Grace comes by God’s actions alone and has nothing to do with us objectively doing good, being happy, or keeping distance. I propose that Graceful Preaching will help reshape our core beliefs about God’s grace and encourage our intended human response to that gift. Through the structure we use and the focus we choose we can participate in the Holy Spirit’s transformation of individuals and communities. Graceful Preaching invites us to live as a people of gratitude, which is far beyond being a people with a Moralistic Therapeutic Deism.
