Praying for Mercy

 In some bad situations in our lives it seems that there is no good solution. We think about it in every way we can, but there doesn't seem to be a logical way that things will work out well for us. This is a very discouraging time for us. We can just give up and be depressed, or we can pray for the Lord to grant us mercy from Him or from others. Praying for mercy is always the best thing to do.

Jacob found himself in a very bad situation. He needed to send his youngest son, Benjamin, with his brothers to Egypt, so they could buy food during the terrible famine. He knew he might not get Benjamin back, which would be devastating to him. (Genesis 43:14) So he prayed that God Almighty would give his sons mercy before the man in charge that he might release their other brother and Benjamin. If he didn't, Jacob would just have to be bereaved in his loss.

We always need to remember that our God is Almighty God. He can do anything. In fact, those things that are impossible for us are very easy for Him. Therefore, we should never think any situation is hopeless. Also, our God is the God of mercy. He knows that we are weak and lack knowledge. He knows we need help from Him, and because of His love and mercy, He often decides to be merciful to us, if we pray and trust Him.

Ultimately, receiving mercy is receiving less punishment than we deserve because of our sins. It means having things work out better than we deserve when we mess up. This is how God operates most of the time. That is why He sent Jesus to die for our sins and rise again for our salvation. We were hopeless without that sacrifice, but God rescued us. He had mercy on us. We should be eternally grateful for that mercy and keep praying for mercy when we mess up now.

#NHBaptistdotorg

Tomorrow, I intend to read Genesis 44-46.