“Be
Merciful, O Lord” By Melanie Rigney
Then the LORD said to
Elijah the Tishbite, “Have you seen that Ahab has humbled himself before me?
Since he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his time.
I will bring the evil upon his house during the reign of his son.” (1 Kings 21:28-29)
Be merciful, O Lord, for we
have sinned. (Psalm 51:3a)
“For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you
have? Do not the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brothers
only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same?” (Matthew 5:46-47)
Piety
Jesus, You can do anything. Help me to
grow closer in perfect love.
Study
Don’t expect a pat on the back or a
big “atta-girl” or “atta-boy” from the Lord because you sacrifice for a beloved
member of your family or a friend.
And for that matter, don’t expect
that pat on the back if you sacrifice for and love someone who has knowingly or
unknowingly frustrated and betrayed and undercut you at every turn.
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus
tells us to love everyone and be perfect, as is our heavenly Father. Wouldn’t that be so much easier if every once
in a while, God stopped and told us He recognized just how much it took for us
to greet the woman who stole our husband or the colleague who beat us out for a
job or the neighbor who with seemingly little effort has the perfect family and
the perfect yard?
The thing is, we may think it’s
about us and the other person and learning to control some not-very-pretty
emotions, and needing an immediate Spirit-filled round of applause. (It may
also come as a surprise to us the others have to control some not-very-pretty
emotions about our behaviors.) It never is. It’s about God and His desire that
like Him, we all love unconditionally. That means getting rid of the but—you
know it. “I love you/him/her, but…” and its companion, “I know I’m supposed to
love you/him/her, but…” End every thought and sentence before the but. The
other person likely won’t notice. You will, and as time goes on, you’ll mean
it… and won’t go looking for God’s delight, because you will know it’s there.
Action
Stop pondering what it is that Jesus
finds so very lovable about that person who works your last nerve. Just love
him or her.
illustration:
https://pixabay.com/photos/thumb-hand-arm-guide-guiding-grip-422558/ , Niek Verlaan from Pixabay
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