Category: Scripture

From the Holy Bible

Giving Mercy and Compassion

On By vickleaIn Scripture2 Comments

Here’s What Mercy Really Looks Like… (Daily Refresh, 8-10-26)

What would you do if you ran into someone who offended, upset, or greatly wronged you? 

The Pharisees in Jesus’ time taught that it was excessive to forgive someone more than three times. But Jesus’ teachings set a standard for extravagant forgiveness. He emphasized that we should forgive others generously and continuously.

The outward expression of forgiveness can look different for everyone, but true forgiveness should offer mercy and compassion to those who hurt us. 

Forgiveness isn’t easy. Showing compassion to someone who hurt us goes against our natural desire. At times, it can even feel overwhelming, unfair, and impossible. But showing someone undeserved forgiveness and compassion is what mercy is … and it’s what Jesus does for us.  

God so loved the world that—despite our constant mistakes and continual rejection of His presence—He sent His only Son, Jesus, to die for us. Although we didn’t deserve His forgiveness or love, He offered it to us anyways. And now, anyone who believes in Jesus can receive unlimited mercy and unmerited grace.  

It’s because God freely offers us mercy that He asks us to show mercy also. 

The world will tell you to hold onto your hurt and allow it to shape you. But Jesus wants to release you from the pain of your past by changing your heart’s posture toward others. This isn’t easy—it is often an act of continual, painful surrender. But Jesus doesn’t expect us to go through the process of forgiveness alone. He offers to help us if we are willing to trust Him and honor His teachings.

Jesus isn’t asking us to do anything that He hasn’t already done for us. And when we offer mercy to someone who has wounded us, we illustrate how God’s forgiveness has impacted us.  

So is there anyone you can offer mercy and forgiveness to today? Spend some time with God, ask Him to search your heart, and give Him any hurt you’ve been carrying.

My Thoughts

Forgiveness is more than letting go of the hurt and the anger and the betrayal you feel. It is also extending mercy and compassion to the person who hurt you. It is wanting God’s best for them even though they hurt you.

For many years, I thought that I was forgiving when I just said the words every time a person and their past transgression against me came up in my mind. I would just say to myself, “I have forgiven them. It’s in God’s hands now” and try to move on. But I found that I never really moved on until I acted in love towards that person. Include them in an invitation? So hard…but so necessary! Offer to help them when you see that they are struggling? Yes, that too. Whatever it takes to show the mercy and compassion that Jesus gave to us is what we should be doing. I will not say it’s easy but I will say that the feeling you will get afterwards of freedom from a burden you have been carrying is worth it. I will not say either that I have arrived and practice mercy and compassion all the time. That wouldn’t be true because God is still working in my heart and life to make me more like Him and this is something that needs a lot of work. I am more prone to say under my breath, “Go get ’em, God” than I am to ask God to help me forgive completely.

People will always fail us because that’s what they do. We have expectations, they fall short and we hold a grudge. If God held a grudge against us every time we fell short of His standard, I am not sure that Heaven would be populated at all with any of us. But God doesn’t hold grudges. He constantly forgives us and prods us to do likewise. When we say to ourselves that that person doesn’t deserve forgiveness, remember that neither do we. And forgive them with an open heart of mercy and compassion, just as Jesus forgave us.

Prayer, the Beginning and the End

On By vickleaIn Scripture2 Comments

Have you ever thought about when you pray? I start my day with a short prayer of thanksgiving that I woke up, before I even get out of bed. And I end my day by praying about God’s character, His promises and intercede for family members. In between, all day long, I just have a long conversation with God, with short snippets like “I need some help here,” or “I am feeling lonely and could use a reminder of your love.” God is always there, ready to answer.

I really like this illustration because when we start the day with prayer, our hearts are unlocked to allow God to speak to us all day long. Jesus often went away in solitude to pray. He didn’t give a long and loud oratory; He just talked to His Father and that’s what I try to do. Sometimes, I am irate about what is happening in my life and I tell God just that. The time I spend talking to Him ends up calming me down. I may not ever be able to see things from His perspective, but I do take time to ponder and not to blame and insist on my way.

Ending the day with prayer gives me the peace I need to fall asleep. A lot happens each day, much of it out of my control. But when I pray, I know the One who loves me best is “at the wheel” and will perfectly handle the worries that I hand over to him. I just have to remember that God answers in His time and in His way, not mine. So, with that thought, I can roll over and sleep in peace, knowing that God has never left me and never will.

I will close with this verse that is one of my least favorites to use because it has been misused and abused so much. The whatever needs to line up with God’s will. And it will be yours, in His way, in His time. I always remember when I read this verse that God says His ways are not our ways or His thoughts our thoughts. His way is better. Thus, although this verse is true, it needs to be understood through the context of who God is and what Jesus was really saying here. He was NOT saying that His Father is our “fairy godmother” ready to grant our wishes as soon as we utter them. After all, Jesus prayed for the cup of suffering to be removed from Him, but He went to the cross and died. Why? Because He also prayed, ”Not my will, but yours be done.” That is how we should approach our requests to God, with the attitude that God knows best and we don’t. God has a plan in mind that we don’t always know but we can participate in it if we spend time in prayer and ask to be included in His plans, not just ours.

What thoughts do you have about this verse? It sometimes makes me cringe as I hear the “name it and claim it” advocates preaching it while they also give you the address to which to send funds to them. Then, I think to myself that it isn’t God’s fault that people misuse His word. He means it all for good, so I am going to lean on this verse, knowing that it’s true because God says it and He doesn’t lie.

First Love

On By vickleaIn Scripture4 Comments

After fifty-three years of marriage, I don’t remember well when I first met Harry and first loved him. I have flashes of remembering soft touches and eyes that met with love. Now we are old, still married, and although the love is still there, it looks and feels different. It is Harry taking me to various doctors, making dinner every night even as the baseball game plays in the other room, and kissing me gently on the lips as he heads out to run errands. It is me making his coffee and having it ready for him in the morning, putting fresh soap for him to use in the shower, and reminding him to take his Wednesday medicines or to call the doctor for his follow up appointment.

We have had the pleasure of having our twenty-one year old granddaughter living with us for the last eleven months. Today is her last day with us as she leaves early tomorrow morning for her college classes and then heads home to Pennsylvania to get married next week. We have seen her with her beloved Josh and seen a lot of reminders of what first love looks like. The two of them sparkle together, with a constant desire to be in the same room just to be near one another. They look for ways to make each other smile or laugh at silly, seemingly unimportant things. They encourage each other, especially Josh encouraging Teya when she feels stuck on come college assignment. And of course, there are kisses and hugs…not passionate ones as one might do privately, but kisses that say, “You are my future and I am glad you are in my life.” Their eyes speak of promises and expectation for a wonderful life together.

The way Teya and Josh are together is the way our relationship should be with Jesus. Not stagnant or feeling old and in need of refreshing, but always a new beginning with Him each day. Every day is a new day to show Jesus how much we love Him by spending quality time with Him and listening for Him to speak to us. We should glow when we leave His presence, if not visibly, then inside because we know we are changing from the inside out just because we were with Him.

In Revelation 2:4, I can imagine the sadness in Jesus’s eyes and voice as He tells the church that they have left their first love. He, He is our first love. Do you recall when you first met Jesus? Were you excited? Overjoyed? A little afraid and a lot awed? That was how I remember feeling. But mostly, I remember that for the first time in my life, I felt accepted for who I was and loved just for being me. I didn’t have to perform with good grades and honor rolls. I was enough just being me. And I still am enough. I still am accepted. And I hope and pray that Jesus will always be a first love for me, that I will never lose the wonder of His presence and His love for me.

Next week, we leave to go to Teya and Josh’s wedding. I am excited to see this celebration of love occur and I am happy to be reminded of the similar vows Harry and I took over fifty years ago. Harry is my first love here on earth, the man who showed me what love is so that believing in the love of Jesus was easier for me after years of rejection.

I may or may not be posting regularly as we are traveling a lot and seeing family, all good things. Just know that I will be thinking of my dear friends online and praying that each of you remember fondly the first time you met Jesus and fell in love with our Savior.

God Delivers

On By vickleaIn Scripture1 Comment

Pondering this verse first made me consider who is righteous? We are, if we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. He is righteous and extends His righteousness to us through His sacrifice on the cross. It’s all about grace and mercy and a free gift for those who choose to accept it.

The next part of this verse is the “no fun” part. It is no fun and somewhat surprising that we whom God counts as righteous can still expect to have many troubles. They are not promises…the verse says may have many troubles. But such is life…we all have problems. Some with family, some with finances, some with health. But I don’t think anyone gets out of this life without some kind of problem at sometime.

The final part is the promise: the Lord delivers him from them all. It doesn’t say that the Lord takes us out of the situation and we are totally freed from it. No..it says we are there and God delivers us from the troubles. And just so we are all on the same page, keep in mind that God’s deliverance may not look like we envision. I think of recently being diagnosed with congestive heart failure. I can kick and scream and shout “unfair” all I want, but that won’t change the situation. I had to come to the realization that my only deliverance will be from God. He could use doctors, but maybe not. He could use miraculous healing, but maybe not. Perhaps the deliverance will come when I go home to be with Him and all of the health concerns I have here on earth are gone, just vanished. Or God could do something totally unexpected and unimaginable that I have not named because I don’t have His thoughts or the ability to think His thoughts. In every situation, we need to step back and let God be God. He made me and He can fix me in the way that He deems best. The deliverance is promised but my desire to tell God how I want to be delivered is not promised. I am not God, He is…so the promise is there. And once again, we all have to bask in God’s presence and know that He is working on the deliverance because He is always present with us. In the hard times, in the good times, in the sad times and in the happy times. God is there. He is present and waiting for us to surrender our will to His so that He can deliver us in His perfect way.

Waiting Builds Faith

On By vickleaIn ScriptureLeave a comment

www.bible.com/reading-plans/74393/day/1

In the video that preceded today’s Daily Devotional on the YouVersion Bible App, the speaker said something profound that I hadn’t thought of before. Waiting builds faith. It’s the place where we lean on God and He comforts us and gives us direction. I hope you will consider joining in on this Bible study.

Five days…and maybe more hope and a new perspective!

Spark Life with Your Words

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

The Power of Life and Death (Daily Refresh, 7-30-26)

Think of a time you said something you regret, or were the target of undeserved gossip. Now, reflect on a situation where you encouraged a friend who was hurting, or felt the life-giving effects of someone else’s words.

Words matter. Your words matter. And God has given you the freedom to choose how you use them. 

Are you using your words to tear down or build up? To provoke destruction or stimulate restoration? Do your words stir up drama or encourage peace?

“What you say flows from what is in your heart,” Jesus explained in Luke 6:45.

Fruit reveals the health of a tree, just as a tongue reveals what is happening in the heart.

Most of us want to use our words for good and not for harm. We don’t want to be unkind or critical. But James 3 tells us that the tongue is unstable and cannot seem to be tamed.

So, what can we do? Is there a way to control it?

Self-control is a fruit the Holy Spirit produces in us, which means we can’t manufacture controlling our tongues on our own. But, we do have a part to play in the process: we need to stick close to Jesus. 

When we read His Word, seek His face, and walk in His ways (no matter how many times we mess up and have to begin again), love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control begin to grow in our lives. The biblical term is abiding: staying, continuing, or remaining in Jesus’ presence.

As we abide with Jesus, the Holy Spirit begins to curb the way we speak and change the way we act. When that happens, our words start to bring life and hope to the people around us. 

So this week, how will you use your words to bring healing and hope to people? If this isn’t something you’re used to doing, it’s never too early to speak words that spark life.

My Thoughts

The video that preceded this devotional gave me a lot to think about. The speaker said something that I am pondering. The words we speak to others are important and can be encouraging or destructive, but so can the words we speak to ourselves. I think the reason that means so much to me is that I am not one who thinks I am worthy of praise or recognition or anything positive really. And I sometimes find myself saying “It’s okay. You are getting what you deserve.” I am not speaking life to my own self. God doesn’t mean for me to get what I deserve. He wants me to have His best for me and I need to notice all that He has done and is doing for me and speak in expectation of what He will do next.

It is also easy for me to grumble under my breath about my husband or other loved ones who do something I disapprove of. I am the only one hearing the words but they end up hurting that person later because I am storing them in my heart and when I boil over, that is what flows out. So, the Holy Spirit has been stopping me lately, even before today’s devotional, and reminding me to think kind things so that when I am speaking to that person, kind things come out of my mouth. I’m not going to lie. It’s hard, but it is worth it to hear the encouraging words come out instead of the ones that I have no business saying just because I am frustrated or angry. I read sometime in the last few weeks that Jesus knew that He had a limited amount of time to make a difference in the world, so He chose all of His words carefully. As His followers, should that not be our habit all the time, too? I want to be a spark for life not a cold bucket of water for someone struggling. How about you?

God’s Promises

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

One of the things that keeps me going on the really hard days is reviewing the promises of God and reminding myself that He always keeps His promises.

As a person who has always been afraid of being in total darkness, this promise means a lot to me. I won’t need the sun or moon because God will be an everlasting life for all of us. No more darkness, ever!

With all of the medical tests I have had to undergo and facing more to come, this scripture verse has been my mantra. I am not facing any of this alone. God is right there with me and if the tests show results that are not good, then I know that God is still holding me up and will continue to do so until He calls me to come home to Him.

Sometimes I feel like a pellet from a BB gun. The gun may be aimed at the target, but somehow, some of those pellets go every way except where you want them to go. I keep in mind that God has perfect aim, is pointing me just where He wants me and if I will just be still, I will get there. Fretting doesn’t work nor do sleepless nights. In fact, God’s peace allows me to sleep in the midst of all of this chaos of doctor visits. I have concluded that I should sleep because God “has the watch” all night, every night.

What are some promises that speak to you in a special way? Feel free to share them in the comments. I look forward to reading them!