On the Mercy Of God

This revelation was not broken off by our first parents' sin. "After the fall, [God] buoyed them up with the hope of salvation, by promising redemption; and he has never ceased to show his solicitude for the human race. For he wishes to give eternal life to all those who seek salvation by patience in well-doing."

Even when he disobeyed you and lost your friendship you did not abandon him to the power of death... Again and again you offered a covenant to man.

We sin over and over and over again.  And every time, our Lord is willing to forgive us.  This just completely boggles my mind every time I think about it.  I, like most other people, am a creature of habit.  And I can tell you that bad habits are a lot easier to pick up than good habits.  They're also a lot harder to quit.

So I must have to use the confessional often.  And every time I think to myself, "I can't believe I have to say the same dang things again.  This priest must be tired of hearing it.  But what's worse, God has to be tired of hearing it too."

I don't know if the priest is tired of it or not.  But as of yet, he's never refused to give me absolution.

As for God--I'm sure it is getting old.  And that motivates me to work harder.  But at the same time, I know that He will be merciful.  He was merciful over and over again with His people.  He's merciful over and over again with me. 

His greatest act of mercy isn't so much in forgiving me for my habits, but in making Himself known to me when I wasn't deserving.  And what's more, He continues to give me hope after I've betrayed him.

Do you see what I'm getting at here?  It's not just in the forgiveness...it's in the knowledge that we can be forgiven.  Because without that knowledge, we would never ASK for mercy.  And that's really what this article is about.  God giving us hope and direction in life.  As long as we try to accept Him, God will always be the light at the end of the tunnel.