Merciful God

Prayer-Soldier · Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2011 1:42 pm Post subject: Merciful God

For there is no other God but you, who has care of all, that you should show that you do not give judgment unjustly. Neither shall king, nor tyrant in your sight inquire about them whom you have destroyed. For so much then as you are just, you ordered all things justly: thinking it not agreeable to your power, to condemn him who deserves not to be punished. For your power is the beginning of justice: and because you are Lord of all, you make yourself gracious to all. For you showed your power, when men will not believe you to be absolute in power, and you convinced the boldness of them that know you not. But you being master of power, judge with tranquility; and with great favor dispose of us: for your power is at hand as you will. But you have taught your people by such works, that they must be just and humane, and have made your children to be of a good hope: because in judging you give place for repentance for sins. (Wisdom 12:13-19)

How blessed are we for the mercy of our Lord. How glorious is He that he guides us not with His great power, but with His boundless love. As He created us, He could easily destroy us for our sins, but instead, He reaches out to save us. In prayer, we should offer thanks that despite our faults in what we do and what we fail to do, that we have such a patient, forgiving and loving God.

What would be our fate if our God was not the example of love, but held hate like the evil one? We need only look at the strife amongst men as the fruit of hate rules so many souls. As divisions are sown; conflict, miseries, enmity and death follow in the wake of all which is the opposite of love. What would be our fate if our universe had no love? What hope would there be for anyone if only evil walked among us? Only despair would fill our days, only misery would be the fruit of our hours.

Our God has given us the Word so that we understand the blessings of love and the wages of hate. The commandments He has given us are not to enslave us, but to free us from selfishness, to give us the liberty of selflessness, to fill our hearts with the blessings of love; not just for God, but for one another and ourselves. In prayer, we should ask that hate be washed from every heart and that love should flourish, for it is selfishness which drives hate, it is hate which drives divisions among peoples, and it is divisions which drive the conflicts which lead to suffering, misery and death.

We are given the span of our lives in this world to reveal what is truly in our souls. How we respond to the tests of the world reveal our disposition to love and hate, to selflessness and selfishness. So much about us is rooted in the later, but God calls us always to the former. Though we may not understand in this day, we are blessed that He sent to all His children the Holy Spirit to stand always by our heart so that should we open the door, we might receive the blessings of faith. Through faith and the power of the Holy Spirit, we will come to know the great joy and happiness only love can bring.

Likewise the Spirit also helps our infirmity. For we know not what we should pray for as we ought; but the Spirit himself asks for us with unspeakable groanings. And he that searches the hearts, knows what the Spirit desires; because he asks for the saints according to God. (Romans 8:26-27)

What is in our soul, we cannot hide from God. In scripture, it is written that He knew us before we were formed in the womb. He knows of what we are capable and the gifts He has granted us. He knows that in this world we will face the struggle of deciding by what we shall be swayed. From the day of our conception in the womb of our mother, we mature, learning the universe about us. In our youth, we lack understanding. In our age, we make mistakes in our understanding. He knows this, for He set all this in motion. All choice He has left to us so that we may show what responsibility we have, if we can learn His Word, if we are willing to accept our afflictions and if we are willing to use His gifts for the good for which they were meant.

If the temptations of the evil one sway us to selfishness, all is not lost, for the Holy Spirit will seek to call us back to the way of the Word. If we become afflicted with hate, all is not lost, for the Holy Spirit will seek to reveal to us the path of love. Though the world is full of misery and strife, all is not lost for each day, the Lord seeks to turn our hearts and put our hands to His works. Wherever we see love and mercy in the world, we see the hand of God at work. It is our choice whether we will lend our hand and align ourselves with the blessings of God. There is no test of the world so great that cannot be overcome if we seek to face it with the Holy Spirit in our hearts.

Another parable he proposed to them, saying: The kingdom of heaven is likened to a man that sowed good seeds in his field. But while men were asleep, his enemy came and oversowed cockle among the wheat and went his way. And when the blade was sprung up, and had brought forth fruit, then appeared also the cockle. And the servants of the goodman of the house coming said to him: Sir, did you not sow good seed in you field? Why then does it have cockle? And he said to them: An enemy has done this. And the servants said to him: Do you want us to go and gather it up? And he said: No, less perhaps gathering up the cockle, you root up the wheat also together with it. Suffer both to grow until the harvest, and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers: Gather up first the cockle, and bind it into bundles to burn, but the wheat gather into my barn. (Matthew 13:24-30)

In each of us, God has given the capability to live in love. To each of us, God has granted gifts which we may put to the service of one another so that as we do, we may spread the fruits of love. To each of us, God has granted the choice of what we shall be, of what we shall do, to what purpose we put His gifts. It is the evil one which will try to turn us so that we will not be reaped with the bountiful harvest, rather, that we will be gathered for the eternal fire.

For a time, the world will have both those who are consumed by hate and those who seek the blessings of love. Through the battle of which is here, we may not understand the justice of His plan, but a time will come where justice will be revealed. A time will come where we will be separated by that which we have become so that our eternal fate may be decided. A time will come where the judgment of the only One who can judge will be rendered. Blessed are those who discover the path of love, for they will understand the power of the Word, they will believe in the One who brought us the Word, and through their belief, they will find forgiveness for what they have done and what they have failed to do. In prayer, we should pray that we are gathered not for the fire, but to the merciful arms of our Lord.

May the peace and blessings of the Lord be with you always,
Prayer Soldier