Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Mornings & Mercy...


"He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly
and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God."
Micah 6:8

I love early mornings.
But, I also love late nights.
As you can imagine, this creates quite a bit of conflict in my life.

Nevertheless, once that steaming cup of rich coffee reaches my lips,
the reconciliation begins...

This morning I've been meditating on mercy.
As I read and re-read Micah 6:8...I mean really chew on it,
and strive to understand it's implications, I am quieted.
I can feel my heart being tenderized.

Act Justly. LOVE MERCY. Walk humbly with your God.
Hmmm. Yep. There it is.
We have been told what the Lord requires of us.
And when I think about loving mercy,
that isn't as easy as it appears at first glance.

I mean, sure, I love mercy...FOR ME.
But how often do I long for God to have mercy on others?
Oh sure, I want God to have mercy on some.
But everyone? The undeserving?
Then again, how deserving am I really???
You might say being "deserving" is relative, but I disagree.

I have often busted myself thinking,
"oh that's ok, what goes around comes around"
or
"they'll get theirs..."
or
"Lord, strike them down!"

*blushing* 
truth.

But today, I pray for myself,
and all of you,
that you seek to love mercy...
not just for yourself,
but for others.

James 5:11 says "...the Lord is FULL of compassion and mercy."

Lamentations 3:23 says that His mercies are new every morning.
I love the way Sandy MacIntosh put it,
she calls them "mercy muffins...
He bakes them while we're sleeping,
and by the next morning, we're hungry for more."
I just love that...really.

If un-forgiveness is holding you back from wanting mercy for others...let it go.
The greek word for forgiveness is "aphieme" which means "to cut loose"
while the opposite is "to strap on."

Cut loose...let it go...free yourself.

"To forgive is to set the prisoner free, 
and then discover the prisoner was you." 
~ Corrie Ten Boom, Holocaust Survivor
(I am also told Lewes B. Smedes was quoted saying this, 
Corrie may have quoted him)
Either way, I love this quote. 
I have contemplated it many times over the years.

or this one:
"Un-forgiveness is like drinking poison, 
and expecting the other person to die." ~ author unknown

profound.

And so here I sit, with my coffee, and mercy, and you.
Mercy...she's like the warmest blanket 
on the coldest of winter days, such a lovely companion.
I can feel my soul exhale as her coziness wraps around me.

Praying, that as you journey through the rest of this year,
you will consider digging into your heart of hearts to love mercy.
Act justly. LOVE MERCY. And walk humbly with your God.
LOVE MERCY...not just for yourself, but for others.
Veggie Scramble
This is beyond easy. 
I took 2 eggs and scrambled them in a bowl with a splash of 1/2 and 1/2,
salt & pepper to taste.
I melted 1 Tbsp of butter into a frying pan over medium heat,
poured the egg mixture into the pan,
and added 1 Tbsp each of diced bell peppers, cremini mushroom,
purple onion, jalapeno, zucchini, squash, tomato,
one clove of minced garlic, and a pinch of shredded fontina cheese.
Once cooked through, I spooned into mini pitas, and served with
sliced kiwi & strawberries, and red chile cheese potatoes.
serve hot.

Mangia!

12 comments:

  1. Just what I needed to read tonight. The writing God has given you is just beautiful.

    Mercy triumphs over judgment! James 2:13

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  2. Forgiveness is one of the powerful of healing acts ... mercy and forgiveness together are truly heartening for all involved. Well-written, bella!

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  3. Amen, my friend. Thank you for the reminder for me to love God and be like Christ. Mercy follows.

    Now I need to go make breakfast though. That looks amazing.

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  4. Aw, darn it! God wanted me to read this today. My mother in law is coming home for the summer and I struggle...oh how I struggle with forgiveness. I said darn it because it feels like God is speaking to me through you and I haven't wanted to listen and this was like a big yell. :)

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  5. Mercy and I have a love/hate relationship! I love to receive it but hate to extend it... Like you, my thoughts go straight to "they got what they deserved.". God opened my eyes and showed me mercy through almost everyone I know and I was sooo grateful I didn't get what I deserved. So now, I extend mercy as often as I see the need -even before I'm asked.

    Thank you for reminding me of these scriptures today!

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  6. What a marvelous reminder about mercy...so true that we have mercy for the "deserving," not not those we judge not to be. A great message, my friend. And your scramble looks perfect to help start my day (along with a big cup of tea!). I, too, wish we could share a bite together...and talk and laugh. xoxo

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  7. Oh Bella, this is a beautiful reminder that I needed to day. I hate it when I find myself letting the "them" thoughts in. This recipe is perfect, it fills the belly, is healthy and has Mercy on the cook freeing them up to go and soak up the parts of the universe that still have yet to be revealed to them. I have some long overdue projects begging for my attention, but I want to get some jam out to you soon. You have been in my thoughts.
    -Gina-

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  8. I absolutely love that scripture from Micah. One of my favorites. When God spells out what He requires of us, it seems like a good time to listen up. :) Great thoughts today, Bella!

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  9. Hi lovely. What a wonderful post...and such a comfort. I'm happy to tell you that you won my giveaway! Send me your mailing address, and I'll get your package out ASAP!

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  10. Hi bella! Your breakfast scramble has me salivating, because its something that I would have for dinner, as well! So beautiful, delicious, and inviting.

    The first thing about MERCY, that always comes to mind, are from the Song of David in the Psalms!
    There are a number of things that come to mind, but one in particular that came to my mind, which I don't know if appropriate for a pet, but I sure repeated when I had to put my precious cat, Prince down!

    "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD.
    Psalm 23:6

    The other one, that always comes to mind, which we should never forget is:

    O, give thanks to the LORD for he is good, his mercy endureth forever.
    Psalms 136:1

    Another one, from Matthew 5:7
    Blessed are the merciful, for they shall recieve mercy.

    The biggest, and most well known MERCY that everyone know, is from the Psalms 23:6
    Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me all days of m life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD.
    Big hugs, to you...bella!

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  11. Oh, yes, you've put me in the mood for a good scramble! And as always, you've given me food for thought as well. I hope you and your beautiful family are doing well! xoxo

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  12. This looks absolutely scrumptious!
    Wishing you a lovely weekend my friend!

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