** Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame;
he remembereth that we are dust. ** Psalm 103:13,14
In this passage of Psalm 103, the word pitieth can mean a few things according to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance….it can mean… to fondle, to love, to have compassion on, to show mercy. All words that come to mind when we think of small children and how we should treat them, right?
Do we sense a theme developing in Psalm 103? Pity = mercy. Love = mercy. Compassion = mercy.
Just about everything that we should remember, to not forget about our God, has to do with His mercy.
His mercy weaves in and out of everything He does for us and to us. Even in chastisement(Ps 89:33), His correcting Hand is held back with mercy. The Lord is so Rich in Mercy that He can’t help but to let it spill over us all the time. In every moment. Every word. Every act. Every mistake of ours. Every thought that we have, His mercy is smoothing it over.
This all makes me stop and think and ask myself…Am I like God? Is everything I do laced with mercy? Or do I and have I expected way more from others than God expects from me?
The Lord knows who we are and what we are capable of, yet, His mercy goes before us and follows us. He blesses us, and protects us, and encourages us every day.
So, do I do that for others? Do I and did I do that for my own children? Or did I demand that they do what I say without any explanation or understanding on my part that no matter how many times I told them what to do, they just couldn’t grasp the principles because they were children. They didn’t have my life experience, or my adult thinking process.
Adult children get a little miffed at times when they see their parents be more compassionate and patient and merciful with their grandchildren. Thinking it is unfair that so much more was demanded of them than is demanded of our grandchildren. I have to say that I agree with them. I know that I am more patient with my own grandchildren. I understand that they are just children. They have little knowledge, hardly any understanding and no wisdom at all. Because all that takes time and experience to grasp. So, I am more patient and merciful with them. But I didn’t have that wisdom when I was a young mom and young Christian. Yet, the Lord covered all of my mistakes with His mercy and helped my children to grow up healthier of mind than I was able to give them.
I also ask myself… “How have I treated young Christians?”
Have I demanded a Spiritual understanding and depth in them that they are incapable of demonstrating? Just how much mercy have I shown them? Have I expected them to grasp concepts that only now I am grasping?
It is good to stop and examine ourselves and evaluate if there are some areas we could improve on. When I see over and over again the principle and quality of mercy in God spoken of over and over again in the Scriptures, I realize that I need to take some extra time on understanding it and finding ways to live more like Him today. Mercifully. Patiently. With a more tender touch. A more tender heart towards others. To love more. The way the Lord loves. Not how the world loves. With compassion, moved by their needs and being willing to step in and be a little more like Him. And a lot less like me.
“O give thanks unto the Lord, for His mercy endureth forever.” Forget not His benefits.
The benefit that He is Oh, so Rich in Mercy.