Merciful
God is kind and full of mercy;
he is patient and keeps his promise;
he is always ready to forgive and not punish. ~ Joel 2:13 (GNT)
Be merciful just as your Father is merciful. ~ Luke 6:36 (GNT)
KEY IDEA:
When dealing with God and his agenda, "merciful" is the operative word.
PRAYER:
Kind and merciful God, thank you for sending your Son into the world to secure forgiveness and new life for us. I embrace your gift. But I'm inconsistent when it comes to extending mercy to others. It feels so good to be on the side of impersonal justice -- to make sure that people get what they deserve. Help me to more fully appreciate the depths of your mercy and what it means to be merciful. I'm going to become merciful as you are merciful. Amen.
TRANSLATIONS
ABP = Authorized Boydston Paraphrase — my own freestyle biblical adaptation — somewhere between paraphrase, commentary, and sermon
CEB = Common English Bible (©2011, the Common English Bible)
CEV = Contemporary English Version (©1995, American Bible Society)
MSG = The Message (©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson)
NIRV = New International Reader's Version (©1996, 1998, Biblica)
NIV = New International Version (©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011, Biblica)
NLT = New Living Translation (©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, Tyndale House Foundation)
