There are two sides to this coin: receiving mercy and giving mercy. We make messes of both! Whether it’s learning to forgive ourselves and accept that God loves us and truly forgives us, or whether it’s learning to forgive others and apply mercy to them even if it’s difficult, mercy can be messy.

Think about it. Have you ever been so upset that you say (or think), “I may have to forgive you, but I’ll never forget!” Ah, humanity. We create messes, and often we’re drawn to them. Those messes create consequences that not only affect us but others. Or, we’ve made some stupid decisions in our lives, and we keep reminding ourselves of how bad those decisions were and what a mess they made. Sure, we’ve repented and sought the Lord for mercy, but letting go of our past and the decisions of our past? Not so easy to apply God’s mercy when we feel we deserve every bad thing we endure.

Why is mercy so messy? The answer is simply this: We remember. We remember our past. We remember the events and trauma and mistakes that led to us seeking and embracing the mercy of God.  The mess lies with us. It’s hard for us to fathom that a loving God truly forgives and forgets. Why? Because we don’t. Even if we forgive, we don’t forget. So, those past emotions rise up within us, sometimes they’re not even warranted. They just knock on our heart’s door: “Hello! We’re here to run through every mistake you’ve ever done. Make room! We’re going to keep you up for a while.”

The memories don’t go away, and if we don’t daily seek God and lay them at the foot of the cross, we will suffocate in the mess instead of leaning on His mercy.

(Excerpt from His Mercy in My Mess, coming soon!)