Remember the Mercy of God

** This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. ** Lamentations 3:21

To be honest, I was ready to move on from our conversation about hope. I didn’t think there was anything more to say. But this early morning of sleeplessness from jet lag has dawned with the encouraging words of Jeremiah.

I have to say that the books of the prophets are not my favorite books of the Bible. They are tough to get through. As a young Christian, they made little sense to me. Reading them chapter after chapter was more of a determined discipline than a joy filled with understanding. I, frankly, didn’t understand a word from them.

Over the years, it actually has gotten worse. 🙂 I, actually, do understand some of them now. They are filled with warnings to God’s children that have forsaken Him. They are replete with judgments and chastisement to those that have rebelled and ignored Him and His commandments. They show how the innocent can be caught up in the judgment of others. They can be discouraging and spirit crushing, one chapter after another.

The prophetical books can truly give us the idea that life is hopeless and overwhelmingly hard. They can make us feel that we do nothing right. They can make us feel that hope is lost and life is only pain and suffering, like Jeremiah’s life was. He was constantly persecuted, imprisoned, beaten and forsaken for speaking out about the Lord’s will for His children.

But even Jeremiah was able to stop himself in the midst of his own suffering, and his knowledge of the suffering of all of God’s chosen people and remember…

** This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. ** Lamentations 3:21

After being thrown into a pit and left to die, after one king after another punished him for just letting others know the Lord’s opinion on their behavior, after starvation and nakedness, he stopped himself in the midst of his misery and remembered. In the midst of his hardships he proclaims…

** It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul, therefore will I hope in Him. The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord…For the Lord will not cast off forever: But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies. For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men. ** Lamentations 3:22-26,31-33

If the prophet Jeremiah can stop and remember the mercies of God in the midst of a lifetime of suffering, we should be able to as well.

Maybe we are facing or have faced great heartache and hardship. Maybe we have had to watch those we love go through great loss. Maybe there has been an unexpected death, or cancer, or debilitating disease or injustice in the life of our friends and family. Maybe we mourn the direction our society has taken and we are fully aware that the Lord will have to unwillingly chastise the nations that have turned their backs on Him. Maybe we walk under a burden of discouragement and woe for all the evil that is celebrated as good in this world.

Whatever weighs down our hearts and souls, we need to remember that there is hope. A True and Great Hope in the Lord’s mercies. No matter how bad things are or have been, His mercy is and has been greater than our suffering. His compassion is ever present. Every morning his compassion is poured out on us again because His faithfulness is great. He knows the outcome of every trial and He knows what it is that He is transforming in us in the midst of it. He is our portion and our Hope. He is good to those who keep their eyes on Him and seek Him. Even on the bad days, He is good to us. Our trials are not forever. They, too, shall come to pass. The Lord does not enjoy watching us suffer, He walks with us and soothes all suffering with the richness of His mercy. The Lord is still great and merciful and full of compassion in the middle of our toughest seasons.

Mini-hopes and True Hope. Both work together to bring us to a better understanding of the goodness and the mercy of our Great God. Both humble us and bring us to our knees in prayer for our needs and in praise for who He is and for all the kindness that He shows us every day. Both remind us to keep our eyes on Him and to accept that whatever today brings, He is here with us and His mercy and compassion will not fail us.