Mercy
By Ana Blackwell
I have seen God work in miraculous ways in the last couple years. I will never forget how I saw Jesus protect Amelia and give her life when the devil tried to snuff her light during delivery. Or the way God provided for my family when Kyle lost his job, not just for basic needs, but also for my medical treatment. The Father is so good, and He always takes care of His people just like He took care of the Israelites in the desert for 40 years. They always had food and water, their clothing and sandals did not deteriorate, and no other nation was able to overcome them during their travels.
God’s mercy and power are the reason why I am able to have peace during all circumstances. Jesus steps in and saves the day during our time of need, when we call upon Him. There are times when things are out of our control, and that is when the Father invites us to draw boldly near the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16). It is because of His goodness that I have begun to look beyond my family and began to understand Luke 6:6 which says:
“Be merciful as your Father is merciful.”
The scriptures are clear on what God expects His people to be like. We love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). For if doing good deeds comes from anything other than love, then it will show.
The other day, Kyle and I went to Walmart, and my husband decided to get some goodies for the homeless man at the front. As we came out of the store, we spotted him and gave the stranger a bag of food. He said thank you and then asked if we could buy him shoes. Kyle did not hesitate and so he told the man to come inside Wally World to pick out a pair.
The security guards did not want to let the man inside because they have a policy that must be followed. We assured the employee that we would purchase the items and be on our way.
As we went through the store, we noticed that the man wasn’t all there, though he seemed harmless. Really, he was funny but not making sense when he spoke. When we arrived at the checkout line, he also asked for batteries and again, Kyle told him to pick out a pack. Once all the purchases came to an end, we tried to leave after we handed the man his stuff. By the way, I would use his name but he gave us several names so I don’t know if any were his actual name. Apparently, Natalie Portman is his mother so we can call him Mr. Portman from here on out. That one was my favorite.
I remember Kyle trying to tell Mr. Portman about Jesus, but there was nothing that was getting through. That is when I realized we had done our part, and that it was time to go.
I tell this story because we left that parking lot feeling a little defeated. The whole point of the act of kindness was to open up Mr. Portman’s heart to hear about Jesus, but that did not happen. When we arrived home, I turned to Kyle and told him, “our job is to show mercy as Jesus would show mercy”.
It did not matter that the man could not fully appreciate or comprehend our act of kindness. After all, how many times do we brush off God’s grace and we move on to our next prayer request?
I believe we truly learned the meaning of a selfless deed that day at Walmart. If the heart’s motive is to love on someone without wanting appreciation, or anything in return, then we can say we have fulfilled Luke 6:6, “be merciful as your Father is merciful”.
