So Kind

Psalm 103:8 (KJV)
The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

There have been so many times in my life that I've come to the end of my own mistakes, come to the end of my own bad, self-centered decisions, and have had to experience the pain of the result. This is the ugly side of the oft-used biblical reference "you reap what you sow."

Many times I've sown seeds out of the desire to fulfill what my flesh wants, only to reap the inevitable result of corruption and destruction.

And as much as I've deserved a swift kick in the rear from God for my ignorance, my pride, my lack of reliance on His way as the best way, He's never done that to me. When I've been in the pit, face-down in the dirt of my bad decisions, God has never rubbed my face in it.

Why? Psalm 103:8. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and (just in case you forgot what I said two seconds ago) PLENTEOUS IN MERCY.

That word mercy in the Hebrew is beautiful. It means "desire, ardour, in a good sense, zeal toward anyone, love, kindness." It cracks me up that this verse mentions mercy twice, once at the beginning and once at the end, but it's so wise of God. We forget that his mercy is waiting, ever-present, plentiful, abounding, overflowing. In face, we prefer Murphy's Law to God's, quickly assuming that anything bad that could possibly happen will, waiting "for the other shoe to drop." We expect the worst, enter situations skeptically, not hoping too much out of fear of disappointment, instead of remembering that His mercy is available, here, present, and plenteous.

Plenteous in the Hebrew means "much." Not a whole lot of depth in that word, huh? When I was a kid, and my dad would look at me and say, "How much do you love me?" I would stretch my little arms out so wide, wide enough that they were practically behind my back, and say, "This much!" What I was doing was a physical representation of what I wasn't verbally able to express. To my little five-year-old self, stretching my arms out wide meant that my love for him was infinite, inexpressibly big.

So how much mercy does God have for you? How much zeal, how much desire, how much enthusiasm, how much passion, how much love and kindness? THIS MUCH. I'm so thankful for the kindness of God in my life today, for his infinite patience with me. Not a foot-tapping, eyeing-the-clock, how-long-until-you-get-your-act-together, eye-rolling patience. Not simply a tolerance of me or my behavior, but a beautiful zeal for me in both my successes and failures.