I’ve experienced a familiar kind of heartburn lately—not from food, but from finances. With tax season in full swing, the reality of self-employment as a pastor hits hard. In our household, we make quarterly self-employment tax payments, and let me tell you, when you’re the one writing those checks, it’s impossible not to feel it.
I think back to my first job at a grocery store. Back then, taxes were just numbers on a stub—something quietly taken out before I ever saw the money. But now? Now, I notice every cent. As the paperwork piles up each spring, I find myself bracing for the inevitable: tax season is rarely full of pleasant surprises.
That financial weight made me reflect on something deeper. I wonder—do some of us feel this way about faith? About God? Does our spiritual life sometimes feel like a burden, a bill always coming due? Maybe we feel like no matter how much we give—our time, our service, our devotion—it’s never quite enough. Like we’re always behind with God, never quite measuring up.
There is good news. In his letter to the Ephesians, the apostle Paul offers a beautiful reminder for anyone feeling spiritually overdrawn:
Ephesians 2:8–10
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
This passage flips the script. Faith isn’t something taxed. Salvation isn’t something we earn. Grace doesn’t come with a price tag or a payment plan. Jesus paid it all. And because of that, we are free—not to strive endlessly for approval, but to live fully in His love.
Imagine a world where taxes didn’t exist—no forms, no filings, no payments. While that dream might never come true on earth, in heaven, it already has. For those who have placed their faith in Christ, the debt has been canceled. The books are closed. The balance reads: Paid in Full.
So, take a breath. Let grace do what it was always meant to do—free you. No more heartburn. Just peace.
Saxe Gotha Presbyterian Church
5503 Sunset Boulevard, Lexington
Sunday Worship: Traditional 9 am & Modern 11 am