The gift of showing mercy

But this gift often comes in the form of pain and suffering. At that point, it feels more like a terrible nightmare — except you don’t wake up to a normal day afterwards. The pain and agony seems to continue with no end in sight.

Then God shows up. Oh, you’d expect him to clean up all the mess and wipe out all the pain. But he doesn’t. In the midst of the pain, he shows up and walks with you.

Jesus told Peter that he would face severe trials aimed at him by Satan, he was to strengthen the brothers after he had turned again (Luke 22:31). The trials were to be a turning point for him. He would use his experiences to strengthen others.

Paul passes on this concept to the Corinthian church when he said: Blessed be the God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God (2 Corinthians 1:3–4).

While we are experiencing the difficulty, it may not seem like a time of “mercy.” Rather, it’s full of pain, agony, affliction and a host of other struggles. But God gives us strength. His mercies are new every morning like the dew.

That mercy is what we get to pass onto others. When we see people in pain, show mercy and pray for their healing. When we see people struggling with addictions, show mercy by being patient with them. When we see people in sin, show mercy by being forgiving, and invite them into the kingdom of our Lord.

God gave you the gift of mercy so you can share it with others.

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