Mercy

Imagine what it must be like to be standing in front of a river dam. A huge wall standing between you and millions of gallons of water. You feel protected by the wall. Safe. Unnerved. Until you realize it's really, really hot outside. So hot, you wouldn't at all mind swimming in that river. It gets to be hot enough that you actually wish for the dam to break open so you CAN bask in the cool water. Then suddenly, just when you admit you can't live without the water, someone pushes a button, the dam walls split open, and the waters come rushing over you. So refreshing. So overwhelmingly welcome. You wonder how you ever did before without it.

That's how God's mercy is. 1 Peter 2:9-10 shows us that we are a chosen generation, God's own special people. He has chosen us for Himself and has called us out of darkness, into His light. In doing this, He has made His mercy available for us. "You...who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy." (v.10) We had no way to obtain mercy on our own before. We could not grant mercy upon ourselves. We don't have the ability and we didn't realize we needed it before God called us to Himself! We stood there, facing that wall, thinking we were safe and just fine behind it.

But then He called us. He opened that door, allowing His mercy to rush over us like that river water. And now that He's provided it for us, He promises it will never end. Like the river that is constantly flowing past us, God's mercy never ends.

Psalm 107:1-3
"Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,
And gathered out of the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the south."

Not only does the psalmist here remind us that God's mercy never ends, but he also calls us to review God's provisions in the past. When we look back at specific instances of how God has provided for and protected us, we can grab onto that mercy and apply it to the present. This gives us the power to not rest on ourselves for our current struggles. Instead of wondering how we'll get through a trial on our own, then thanking God later for keeping watch over us, we can actually hold onto His mercy and His protection in the trial, and His mercy will guide us through.

By doing this, maybe it will be easier to manage the river rapids, knowing that our Lifeboat will never deflate or go the wrong way on us. We can have complete faith that God knows our path and that not only is He our protection in the river, but He is the river itself.