Great Mercy

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

─ 1 Peter 1:3

Terry walked into the auto shop to pick up his mother’s car after an oil change and stood face to face with Garrett, his nemesis from high school. He deliberately avoided the small town where he grew up, but his mother’s sudden chronic illness brought him back more frequently the last few months.

His teenage years had been difficult. He had always been the smallest in his class and high school only increased the cruel jokes and intense bullying.

Garrett stood behind the counter. “Hey Terry,” he said, “sorry to hear about your mom.” Terry nodded his thanks as he swiped his credit card. Then Garret looked Terry squarely in the eyes and said, “I’m truly sorry for being the horrible person I was to you in high school. I don’t expect you to forgive me, but I wanted to tell you that.”

“I forgave you years ago,” Terry replied with a sincere smile. “We all need mercy, from God and from one another if we want to live in true freedom.”
The sacrifice Christ made, His blood poured out on the altar of the Cross, gave us the opportunity to choose freedom. We can live free of penalties and punishments when we choose Christ and accept His mercy.

Today’s One Thing

Do you know someone who needs mercy today? Are you holding yourself captive because you need to forgive yourself? Accept God’s mercy today and then look to show mercy to someone else.

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