The Power of Mercy

O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity: Grant us the fullness of your grace, that we, running to obtain your promises, may become partakers of your heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Proper 21 BCP 234)

God shows God's almighty and amazing power chiefly in showing MERCY. The greatest way we know about God's power is through MERCY. Mercy, what so many leaders and politicians have cited as weakness, God uses to show great power. 

The world would be a very different place if we all followed in God's image and showed our power through showing mercy towards others. Mercy has never been a trademark value in the United States. Throughout the centuries we have shown what little power we have through war, bullying, threatening, and genocide. Politicians and leaders love to claim we are, or perhaps were, a Christian nation, yet, in looking at our history, over and over again, we fail to show mercy.

My friends, please pray for mercy. Mercy on our nation, mercy on us as people, mercy on the victims of our country's long held hatred. Pray for mercy for those who are struggling right now and pray, pray without ceasing, that you can show God's almighty power through showing mercy towards those around you. We all could use God's great mercy right now.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Nicodemus's Questions

31 May 2015 O God of infinite possibilities, you have revealed yourself in so many ways. Help us to see you in your work of recreating the world in love, justice, and peace, through your Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. Amen. I love to ask questions. When I went to college my father looked at me and said, “I’m so glad I can finally pay someone else to answer all your questions.” Apparently I asked him a few too many questions as a kid. We all know those children, the little ones that wander around asking why every time you say something. After only a little while, How? And Why? Become the worst two words in the history of the English language.  Some questions come about simply through curiosity. We want to know how or why something is the way it is. Some are simply practical. What time should we meet? Where would you like to meet? What do you need from the store? Some are more culturally or politically influenced. Since moving to Texas, the rate at which I have bee...
Read more

Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday 3/1/17 Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 Paradox always seems to hit in the most sacred of moments. Today, I am experiencing some serious conflict between what we have come here together to do this morning and the gospel passage for today. Ash Wednesday is best known for the imposition of ashes in the sign of the cross on our foreheads, but it is also known as a major fast day for the Church. A day where people give up food, sweets, meats, and all manner of other things in order to focus on God. Yet, in the gospel passage from Matthew, Jesus tells us very specifically not to make it known to everyone that we are fasting… which is slightly incongruous with putting ashes on our heads. Paradoxical? Maybe. Hypocritical? Maybe. The true question underneath this ironic situation is, “What is appropriate piety to practice?” This passage in Matthew is structured around the three major ways of the Jewish tradition to practice piety, to practice following their beliefs. First, alm...
Read more

Joy

2/8/18 Joy Joy: (talking to herself) Yes, Joy? Joy: You'll be in charge of the console, keeping Riley happy all day long. And may I add I love your dress, it's adorable. [Joy begins to happily twirl around] Joy: Oh, This ol' thing? Thank you so much, I love the way it twirls... - Disney Pixar's Inside Out Joy is deeper than happiness. Joy is a deep seated calm emotion which underlies other emotions and moods throughout the day. Its a way of living in gratitude and relationship with God. Happiness comes and goes throughout our lives, but joy endures, despite hardships. Joy is the foundation which allows people to be content, to thrive, to be pleasant even when bad things are happening in their lives. You can find the word joy over three hundred times in the English NRSV of the Bible. From the beginning to the end, joy is present throughout the scriptures. People sing with joy, people dance in joy, people enjoy the fruits of their labor, God blesses...
Read more