Merciful God
"Where is another God like you, who pardons the sins of
the survivors among his people? You cannot stay angry with
your people forever, because you delight in showing mercy."
-Micah 7:18
A man lay crying in his bed at night. He was in deep despair
because, through his own sins, he had lost his marriage,
family and job. He was carrying on what he thoughts was a
quiet affair with another employee, but was not as private a
matter as he perceived. When his wife found out, she left
him. When the children heard the news, they lost respect for
him, and weren't sure they ever could trust their dad again.
Lastly, the man was given his termination of employment
papers.
That night, in his hands he sobbed the most heartbreaking
tears of anguish and remorse. "Oh God!" he cried out, "What
have I done? What have I done?" It was ironic the man had
called out to God, since, after all, he was a
self-proclaimed atheist. Since he had not seen enough proof
of God's existence, he simply went about his life, not
giving further thought to the matter.
That night, in his broken and pitiful state, the man called
out to God. He didn't know why he felt compelled to cry out,
but he simply followed what seemed to be the right thing to
do. "Please forgive me, God," he whimpered in humility. "I
have been so selfish; only thinking of my own needs, and not
concerned with how my actions could affect others. In fact,
what I thought was a need, turned out to be simple lust. The
lady I was sneaking around with just seemed so pretty, and I
enjoyed the attention she gave me. I guess I was just
flattering my own ego, and feeding my own selfish desires.
Can you ever forgive me, God? Can you ever?"
The man was desperate to repair the damage he had done, but
he didn't know if it was possible. Once his tears has dried,
he spoke to God again, "I have acted despicably, and I want
to be a better man. I don't want to be selfish and uncaring
anymore. I want my wife back. I need my children in my life.
I love them so much! Please God, help me! Please forgive my
past sins, and help me be that better man."
Seven years after the above scene, this same man sat in a
cafe talking to the pastor of his church. "You know,
Pastor," he said, "It wasn't easy to repair all the damage I
caused, and it was most definitely an uphill struggle, but
God was merciful, and thankfully, so were my wife and
children. It took us a long time and many small steps to get
where we are today, and the broken trust and pain did not
disappear overnight, but I can only thank God that we are a
family again. If I didn't believe God was real and had the
ability to show mercy, I don't know if I would be here
today. He has been so good to me when He didn't have to be.
I spit on God and turned my back on Him so many times in the
past, and yet, when I cried out to Him, He still came to my
rescue and showed me mercy and love."
"Pastor," he continued, "It is my honor and joy to be able
to share my story with the rest of the congregation this
Sunday. I don't want anyone else to ever endure what I went
through. I want all people to know that God IS real, and
DOES forgive when we genuinely hunger for a better way."
The pastor smiled and nodded his head, and the two finished
their lunch; the afternoon sun shining upon them both.
Contributed by Melanie Schurr (c)2004 Melanie Schurr Melanie
Schurr is author of "Ecstatic Living Ecstatic Loving: How to
have more peace and joy in marriage, and life in general by
walking in harmony with God," and "Son Salutations: A
refreshing collection of modern inspirations for those who
seek God each day." For more information, visit her web page
at
http://www.angelfire.com/mi/melschurr