Mercy

daily devotion from "Becoming" Women's devotional bible..........

We don't choose the person who sits in the cubicle beside us, the uncle we've become related to by marriage, or the neighbor who just moved in next door. We can't control the choices of wayward children or wayward parents or wayward friends. What pleases God is your mercy toward the ones you haven't chosen. They may be fallen, struggling, disappointing, or downright embarrassing. Maybe one is the stranger who rear-ended you in the parking lot. God loves it when you give to anyone the mercy he has so freely extended to you.

when your soul is being perfected by mercy, judgment fades. The rules don't matter as much, and what everyone might think becomes ridiculous. You become tender toward people in sin, the snare of additions, and the depths of pain and suffering. On the other hand, life gets messy when you become merciful, and some people won't understand. (They didn't understand Jesus either). Some will judge - bank on it. Someone will doubt your motives or your radical choice to extend mercy. Give on, because blessed are the merciful.

I expect that no matter how much you give, you will always receive more than you have given. God's mercy accounting is amazing. But one warning: mercy won't let you hold onto your legalism or value rules more than souls. Mercy might make you uncomfortable and blow away the box you've drawn around God. If you become merciful, things are going to change. You are going to look into the eyes of people and hurt for their pain. You are going to hear yourself offer light into their darkness. You will start to love the unlovely.

You'll be a lot more like Jesus that way.

Think about it: How has God come to you as mercy? How has he surprised you with grace and tenderness? Why is it sometimes easier to choose judgement over compassion and mercy? If the blessing of giving mercy is receiving mercy, what are the obvious implications of becoming a woman/man of mercy?

Dig Deeper: Micah 7:18 (God's mercy); Matthew 5:7 (the merciful) and James 2:13 (the unmerciful)

We must show love and mercy to a lost world.......I pray that I continue to show mercy to people. That I don't become judgmental - but loving and compassionate to those who are desperate for him.

be blessed.