This is a true story that I am personally acquainted with. John, who is battling cancer, took his truck to a car wash. Afterwards, he decided to get a hamburger. As he pulled into the drive-thru, his wet foot slipped off the brake pedal and he rear-ended the car in front of him. The man in the car, Aaron, said it felt like an earthquake had struck. As he was getting out of his car, he said the Holy Spirit brought two words to mind: “Mercy and grace.”
Both men got out and met in the drive-thru. John apologized, and Aaron said, “Let’s get our food, and then we can talk.” After getting their orders, they exchanged the necessary information. John explained what happened, and also told him about his cancer. Aaron then said, “Let’s pray!” They did, and then Aaron invited John to his church.
John went to his church, and when it came time to pray, they asked John to come down and they laid hands on him and prayed for him. Needless to say, John was touched by God’s mercy and grace which was shown to him through a faithful servant, Aaron. The following Sunday, Aaron shared John’s story with his prayer group. It turns out, in that prayer group was a close friend of John’s sister. God never ceases to amaze me in how He connects people together.
Mercy and grace are two precious commodities that we all need every day, and God is more than willing to supply them in abundance. Here’s what the Holy Spirit calls out to each of us:
“We have a High Priest Who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses because He has been tempted in every way that we are—yet He did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with boldness and confidence, so that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:15-16
Every day, in every way, God’s children need two things from the throne of God to help them make it through that day: Mercy and Grace! We don’t live a day without offending in one way or another. That’s why Jesus taught us to ask our Father in heaven to forgive us our sins, even as we forgive others: we are guilty and we need our Father’s mercy of forgiveness. And the Scriptures declare that our Father delights in showing mercy.
Grace! “Marvelous grace of our loving Lord, grace that exceeds our sin and guilt, yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured, there where the blood of the Lamb was spilt.” It is by God’s grace we are saved. And then, from the day of our spiritual birth, unto the day Jesus comes for us, God is faithful to supply the grace that is sufficient to help us face whatever comes our way. The grace we need daily is our God, through His Holy Spirit, helping us every step of our journey.
Jesus gave these instructive words to His church: “…I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous…Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Matthew 5:43-48 Would we be perfect children? Think about this.
Aaron was sitting in his car minding his own business. All of a sudden—BOOM! He has been rear-ended. Through no fault of his own, he has been hit. How do most folks react to this kind of accident? Curse, threaten, and sue. But Aaron had it in his heart for God to give him the opportunity to witness and encourage others, so on that day, the Holy Spirit led Aaron to show mercy and grace to someone who needed it.
Life rear-ends us in many ways as we travel this earth. God help us to have the mindset to be vessels of honor, through which He can pour out His mercy and grace to those in need.
Brother Bill is a Bible teacher and can be contacted at bboldham@sbcglobal.net