Mercy

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. Lamentations 3:22

I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life.  Mistakes that have hurt my husband, my children, others I love, friends, strangers and even myself.  My sins pile up each day, the cessation of which I seem wholly unable to accomplish.  And I’m not alone.  

We are a fallen, sinful lot, us humans.  If we were to take a moment, right now, to think about last week, how many times did we tell a lie, no matter how small?  How many times did we demand to be first, rather than last?  How many times did we put our pride over another’s need?  How many days have gone by that you haven’t forgiven your mother, sister, friend or even that stranger who cut you off on the road?

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Psalms 51:1

There have been a number of attempts over the years to try and convince society that original sin is just a myth.  That man is really a naturally good person.  In the 1800s a man by the name of Robert Owen decided “none are or can be bad by nature.”  So, he set out to create a utopian, socialist society in New Harmony, Indiana.  That experiment lasted just three years before it collapsed.  The reason?  Sin is not the result of some outward set of problems or circumstances that cause us to  “go bad.”  No, it’s because we are by nature sinful.  One only need to look at the answers to my questions at the beginning of this post!

Someone was talking to me about the concept of “being true to our authentic self.”  It was in reference to accepting immoral behavior as good and right.  But I have to tell you, my “authentic self” pops through quite enough already and gets me into plenty of trouble.  I’m just incredibly thankful that at the end of each day as I lay my head down to sleep, I can ask for mercy and forgiveness.  And it is given freely.