Well good evening all! Sadly our little family of three is back home in
Georgia. Why are beach trips never long enough? Will we ever be at the
beach and think, "I'd sure like to go home today," or "Gosh, it feels
like we've been here forever!" Anyways- we made the drive home in a
record time of 5 and a half hours. Bekham logged a nice 2 hour nap smack in the middle of the drive which was much needed! He hadn't napped well consistently since being sick. It will be interesting to see what this week has in store as we sync back into our routine (only to leave for our next vacation in 2 weeks).
Today's prayer of the day:
MERCY. Luke 6:36 says, "Be merciful just as your Father is merciful." Some of you may remember my super deep definition of mercy: not getting what you deserve. A more thorough word study reveals the following: Compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm. An event to be grateful for, especially because its occurrence prevents something unpleasant or provides relief from suffering. I also read that in an ancient context, mercy sometimes could be rendered as
gratitude or
steadfast love. Hose 6:6 says, "For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings." As you can see in this verse, mercy seems to take on more of the ancient rendering. Mercy can also be defined as favor shown within a relationship of love. Another interesting find is that feelings of compassion are not necessarily involved when it comes to mercy. One does not need to feel compassion to offer biblical mercy. I could keep writing about all of the insights I found while looking up the word mercy, but you could technically do this yourself, so I won't bore you with my research!
Jesus- thank you that you are a God of mercy. Thank you that you love us enough to show us your steadfast love, your compassion, and your forgiveness by extending your mercies to us. As you promise, they are indeed new every morning. You've provided us with an eternal relief from suffering simply by placing Your favor upon us ... which we did nothing to earn. Lord you are incredible. I pray that Bekham will be merciful just as you are merciful. I pray that he would love people, ALL people, and out of that love show mercy to ALL people. Because he is human, I know there will be people that he won't necessarily have compassion for. Lord let him show mercy to them regardless. Give him a steadfast love when it comes to relationships with others. Again, I feel a huge responsibility in modeling mercy for Bekham. As his parents, we will be presented with a multitude of opportunities to display what mercy is. God- you are the perfect "parent" to us. Teach us to be the best parents we can be- using both Biblical discipline and Biblical mercy when it comes to raising this boy.
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