"The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The Lord is good to all and His mercy is over all that He has made" {Psalm 145:9}
"Mercies, anew". It's a pretty simple title, isn't it? Well, it may seem simple at first glance, however, its meaning is anything but simple.
At some place and time in our lives we have shown mercy to others. If you sit there and think about it, I'm sure many different circumstances would start flooding your mind. You'll think about the time you showed mercy to the girl who made fun of your imperfections, or to the guy or girl who pleaded for forgiveness after leaving you for another, or maybe even to your dog who decided it would rather use your foot than the closest fire-hydrant. Whatever the case, we are all aware of what mercy entails. But, think about this. The Creator of the Universe created man in His own image, but due to our sinful desires, we chose to rebel against the Creator's perfect plan, and live for our own glory, rather than for His. How should our Creator respond to this?
The other day, while reading C.J. Mahaney's, Living the Cross Centered Life, I came across this statement that absolutely floored me: "Considering how our sin must appear in the pure sight of the righteous and holy God who created us, why are we even still here, alive and breathing?" What a statement. We (the creation) are sinful/God (the Creator) is righteous and holy. That's pretty much all we need to know in order to wonder, "Hmm how am I still here, alive and breathing?" That's our Creator's mercy upon us, which surpasses any mercy we have or ever will show to anyone or anything.
I'll have the Apostle Paul explain it a tad further:
Mercies anew, that is what He provides daily in my life. Without it, I would be without breath. Without it, I would be without hope. Above all, without it, I'd be eternally without Him.
"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness"- {Lamentations 3:22-23}
... It's beautiful. It's truth. And He is my God.
"Mercies, anew". It's a pretty simple title, isn't it? Well, it may seem simple at first glance, however, its meaning is anything but simple.
At some place and time in our lives we have shown mercy to others. If you sit there and think about it, I'm sure many different circumstances would start flooding your mind. You'll think about the time you showed mercy to the girl who made fun of your imperfections, or to the guy or girl who pleaded for forgiveness after leaving you for another, or maybe even to your dog who decided it would rather use your foot than the closest fire-hydrant. Whatever the case, we are all aware of what mercy entails. But, think about this. The Creator of the Universe created man in His own image, but due to our sinful desires, we chose to rebel against the Creator's perfect plan, and live for our own glory, rather than for His. How should our Creator respond to this?
The other day, while reading C.J. Mahaney's, Living the Cross Centered Life, I came across this statement that absolutely floored me: "Considering how our sin must appear in the pure sight of the righteous and holy God who created us, why are we even still here, alive and breathing?" What a statement. We (the creation) are sinful/God (the Creator) is righteous and holy. That's pretty much all we need to know in order to wonder, "Hmm how am I still here, alive and breathing?" That's our Creator's mercy upon us, which surpasses any mercy we have or ever will show to anyone or anything.
I'll have the Apostle Paul explain it a tad further:
"You were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience- among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. BUT GOD, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-- by grace you have been saved-- and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness towards us in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:5-7).{{Seriously, Praise the Lord for that "But God"!}}
Mercies anew, that is what He provides daily in my life. Without it, I would be without breath. Without it, I would be without hope. Above all, without it, I'd be eternally without Him.
"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness"- {Lamentations 3:22-23}
... It's beautiful. It's truth. And He is my God.
Great first article for your new blog. It is great to see your passion and love for our Lord. You will make a great biblical counselor!!
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