Mercy

"You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds

shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let

righteousness flourish with it; I, the Lord, have created it."

~ Isaiah 45:8

    

     There's something about the rain that I've always loved, and with Hurricane Matthew here in Florida, I've obviously been getting to see A LOT of rain! Even now as I'm sitting in my home and writing this post I can hear the drops of rain gently hitting our roof and dripping down to water the world outside. I can imagine myself standing out there, too, in the middle of this storm, and just looking up into the sky and feeling the rain hit my face and dampen my hair. It makes me take a deep breath of relief. 

 

     The rain continues to pour down, and though I'm not literally standing outside in the midst of it, I know full well that is indeed falling- all around me; everywhere- which so beautifully reminds me of my Savior's love and mercy and favor towards me that is always showering down on my life. I may not always see it, I may not always even feel it, but I can trust that it is always there. 

 

     When I am standing out in the rain, I feel this vulnerability, yet complete safeness before God. He sees right through me and the many walls I try to put up around myself, straight into my heart. He sees my sin- past, present, and future. He sees my weakness. My pride. My anger. My self doubt. He sees ALL of those things- and He still loves me and delights in showing me His mercy. 

 

     I mess up ALL THE TIME! I'm human- It's what I do! But God's love and mercy towards me always triumphs over His judgement. God even illustrated this fact in the Old Testament, when He would call his people to "meet Him at the Mercy Seat" of the Ark of the Covenant, where they could repent and make atonement for their sins. The cool thing is, that the Mercy Seat of the Ark happened to be the area directly above the place where the Law of Moses (the Ten Commandments) was kept- the rules, the expectations, and the consequences and judgements that would be placed on the people if they chose to sin. But each time the people came to meet God at the Mercy Seat, they were always forgiven and covered with God's love and mercy, not His judgement and authority. 

 

     I just think that's such a beautiful picture of God's character towards His children! It reminds me of a Bethel song called "Mercy" that's one of my favorites right now. The lyrics go like this:

 

My past embraced

My sin forgiven

I'm blameless in Your sight

My history rewritten

You delight in showing mercy

And mercy triumphs over judgement 

Oh, love great love

Fear cannot be found in You

There will never be a day

You're uncertain of the ones You choose

For You delight in showing mercy

And mercy triumphs over judgement 

So I will wake and spend my days

Loving the One who has raised me up

From death to life, from wrong to right

You're making all things beautiful

***Here's a link if you want to look up the song for yourself:  

https://youtu.be/6gFSkCv3XjQ 

 

     I just LOVE that! I LOVE that God so deeply wants to show us His mercy, love and favor if we're willing to show Him just a little bit of ourselves, and get open and vulnerable before Him. His Presence is the safest place to be; it's exactly what He wants for us. For in Him we are kept safe, loved, and continually drenched by His merciful presence, being made beautiful and blameless in His sight.