8 “O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You. 9 To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him. 10 We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. – Daniel 9:8-10.
Father of All Mercies, Look upon us as we approach you with shame in our hearts for disappointing You. Search our souls and see the sincere contrition we bear for not responding with love and obedience to the love and graces You have poured into our lives. We may not always acknowledge it as such, but our deliberate choices of disobedience are a sign of ingratitude to You, our Preserver and Protector.
Thank you Lord, that despite our shame, our trust in the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross gives us confidence to approach You for pardoning mercy over and over. Thank you for the assurance that You never tire of forgiving the contrite heart. As we cherish this privilege of assured mercy, help us to keep the words of Jesus in mind, that we are to reflect mercy to others in the same measure with which You generously dole it upon us.
Therefore Father of all Mercies, keep us mindful of our dependence on all Your mercies in our daily lives. The mercy of pardon; the graces and gifts of the Holy Spirit; the mercy of peace; the mercy of protection; the mercy of providence; the mercy of prosperity; the mercy of good health; the mercy of healing; the mercy of restoration; the mercy of supernatural favors.
If You were to consider our daily infractions of Your holy precepts, none of these divinely ordained graces and mercies would be deserved, but because of Jesus Christ, we appeal to You for them without any hesitation. As we enjoy these Christ-purchased mercies, may we be inclined to show any needed mercy to one another in accordance with Christ’s express wish to be as merciful to others as You, our merciful Father, are to us. Amen.
Hilltop Thoughts, Valley Strengths 