Mercy is defined by Websters as: 1) “compassion or forbearance shown especially to an offender or to one subject to one’s power; 2) a blessing that is an act of divine favor or compassion.”
It does not take long when we look at the world around us to see our need to give and receive mercy. We are living in a season of offense. It seems as if every person is upset about something or someone. What or who offends, annoys, or makes you afraid these days? Think about that for a moment.
How might our Creator be inviting us to respond?
When I contemplate Advent, preparing to celebrate the birth of the King of Kings, and then feel the tension over us, I keep hearing mercy, MERCY, MERCY! I also am drawn to Jeremiah in Lamentations 3. Leading up to the famous verses, he describes some of the pain and grief he was experiencing. When Jeremiah says “He” in this passage he is referring to God. Take a moment to connect with anything that feels familiar. (All emphasis is mine.)
16 He has made me chew on gravel.
He has rolled me in the dust.
17 Peace has been stripped away,
and I have forgotten what prosperity is.
18 I cry out, “My splendor is gone!
Everything I had hoped for from the Lord is lost!”
19 The thought of my suffering and homelessness
is bitter beyond words.
20 I will never forget this awful time,
as I grieve over my loss.
Then Jeremiah shifts from his feelings to the character of our Creator.
21 Yet I still dare to hope
when I remember this:
22 The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
His mercies never cease.
23 Great is his faithfulness;
his mercies begin afresh each morning.
24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance;
therefore, I will hope in him!”
25 The Lord is good to those who depend on him,
to those who search for him.
How do we get to that place of hope and trust in the mercy of God?
26 So it is good to wait quietly
for salvation from the Lord.
27 And it is good for people to submit at an early age
to the yoke of his discipline:
28 Let them sit alone in silence
beneath the Lord’s demands.
29 Let them lie face down in the dust,
for there may be hope at last.
30 Let them turn the other cheek to those who strike them
and accept the insults of their enemies.
The disciplines of quiet and rest, in all humility before God, train us to both receive, then give, mercy.
31 For no one is abandoned
by the Lord forever.
32 Though he brings grief, he also shows compassion because of the greatness of his unfailing love.
33 For he does not enjoy hurting people
or causing them sorrow.
I find I am better able to live into all this when I slow down, to gaze on the Lord, through His Word. Music also helps me shift, but mostly so I can come to a place where I am able to choose to take authority over all other noises, then to silence them. It is in this place of quiet where Abba pours out His mercy, because I have chosen Him above all else.
Please don’t think I have arrived! I am still a work in progress, but through all this, I am learning to receive His mercy so I can pour out to those around me. In this Advent season of anticipation in the midst of so much contention, let’s seek mercy. Jesus was born to die so we do not have to. The ultimate in mercy.
How can you break through offense and the noise to receive His mercy as your own?
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