So - we want God to be perfect according to our perfectly designed specs. To give us exactly what we want when we want it. Even God's Mercy should strive - we think - to meet our criteria for instant gratification and perfect product placement. As if God's Mercy was cranked out by a Fortune 500 Company and we were its hyper-critical shareholders.
Isn't it too bad that today we are so fastidious and we want perfect circumstances in which to look for God's Mercy? Have we forgotten how to take a flying leap towards what we desire over the yawning puddles of inconvenience and temporary troubles that stand in our way? Have we gotten so fixated by the mud at our feet that we forget the Heaven waiting above and beyond us? Receive God's Mercy - even if it comes spattered in mud.
Yet God's Mercy is ongoing, appearing in our lives in the ordinary events, the little things, the little swings that fly us up to a taste of Heaven.
You arrive somewhere late - and somehow you're exactly on time for your purposes.
You think you're stuck in a hole-in-the-wall apartment and another one beckons, out of the blue.
Your mother is fast asleep at the nursing home, and you're able to wake her up to feed her pumpkin pie - and she favors you with a wink and a smile.
Your special needs child receives a wonderful report card.
The latest drug your spouse has been prescribed is cutting through and overcoming his or her clinical depression.
You go through your latest round of tests - and there's no sign of cancer.
You actually smile and enjoy a holiday party - even though you miss your deceased spouse.
You watch at a window and tingle at the first pure flakes of snow, lazily falling through a star-studded sky.
Your dog has puppies and they crawl all over you.
God's Mercies come to us fresh and new every morning, afternoon, evening, and night. Sometimes they're gift-wrapped, or are as loud and merry as a singing card. Sometimes they seem a one-way ticket to disaster.
Can we trust the Giver of Mercy? Can we trust where He places His gifts in our lives? Can we trust that Mercy will one day shine like a diamond with all the facets of its meaning in our lives finally revealed?
Can we look at the shining swing of His Mercy and reach for it, leap for it, regardless of the obstacles that stand in our way? Even if the biggest obstacle is us? Because if we leap with full trust, He'll push the swing in our direction and call out "Catch it - and get on!"