Oh Good Lord, Have Mercy

O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Second Sunday in Lent BCP 218)

"Oh good Lord, have mercy!"  Perhaps from my time living in the south, this prayer-exclamation, said in a thousand of different ways has become part of my normal commentary on life these days. Over and over again, "Oh good Lord, have mercy," seems to fit the bill for how I feel about... well... everything. 

The situation in Texas. Oh good Lord, have mercy. The continuation of the pandemic. Oh good Lord, have mercy. The death of a beloved community member. Oh good Lord, have mercy. My husband leaving his trash on the counter. Oh good Lord, have mercy.  There is so much outside of our control these days and truly the best response we can have is to start praying. Oh good Lord, have mercy upon us. 

Mercy, or compassion or forgiveness on someone within your realm of power, is a trademark of God's actions in this world. Thankfully God has mercy on us, despite all our mistakes, mess ups, and hurts, and we in turn share that mercy with others. God is always merciful, whether we recognize it or not. Through Jesus, God has shown us the greatest compassion, forgiveness, and mercy in redeeming love. While we grieve the losses of life from last week's crisis in Texas, the 500,000 plus people who have died from COVID-19, and our beloved Francis, God wraps us with mercy.