Have you ever realized you needed something but didn’t realize you needed it until…well…you really needed it? You are probably reading that again trying to figure out what in the world kind of double talk is that or simply what am I trying to say.
it is not uncommon to not know you need something until a situation arises and then you see that “Oh man, I’m missing something.” It could be a certain kind of tool, for example. Or this has happened to many: you or someone is cooking and they go to reach for an ingredient and its not there-a spice, a flavoring, or some essential ingredient. I mean…mac & cheese is definitely not the same made with water because you had no milk or it was sour.
Okay…so here’s what I think (I know you are waiting with baited breath): mercy is like that. We talk about grace a lot and when it comes to salvation we know we need it. But mercy is a bit different. Someone has defined it this way: grace is getting what we don’t deserve; mercy is not getting what we do deserve.
But let’s look at mercy differently for a moment…outside of salvation. We talk about showing mercy (Mt. 5: 7) or being shown mercy. But even as we know we need it, we often fail to show it. We celebrate God’s mercy but scream at our children when they mess up. We are grateful for God’s mercy in our relationship but harbor anger, bitterness, even a lack of forgiveness for others.
See what I mean? We need mercy but often fail to show it so we lose sight of needing it. I wish I could express it better. Maybe it comes down to this: maybe to the degree I have been shown mercy is the degree to which I ought to show it. Only when I realize I need God’s mercy will I show it to others.
“Father, thank you for your mercy. Help me to show it to others.”
