Part One
Mercy searches for a way to restore a fallen friend.
The calloused heart will sneer, “He got what he deserved!” The heart that has been crushed on the potter’s wheel asks, “What can I do to help? One hug can make the difference between a heart that breaks, and a heart that heals.
When Paul first wrote to the believers at Corinth, he rebuked them for sexual misconduct, mismanagement of church funds and getting drunk at communion. You don’t need a seminary degree to know those are some pretty serious sins. But in his second letter, Paul writes, “I have great confidence in you" 2 Corinthians 7:40. Think of it! Paul puts his fatherly arms around those champion sinners, with an encouraging word for their reformation and restoration.
Mercy is Greater Than Sympathy
Sympathy is an emotion. It’s often accompanied by tears. There are those who weep so easily their tears are meaningless. It’s all right to weep, of course, but genuine mercy requires a willingness to act.
Jesus wept. But He did far more. He acted. He went to the cross and died to save those for whom He wept.
If your brother has genuine need of twenty dollars, and you have forty dollars in your pocket, don’t just “pray about it”—give him twenty bucks. If you see a sister whose dress is threadbare, don’t just utter a sympathetic comment in her direction—give her one of your dresses.
Source: Being Happy in an Unhappy World
Daily Living
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