I’ll be frank. I felt I had a good sense of control over the whole coronavirus pandemic. I felt I had good footing. I felt that living where we live, we wouldn’t be as impacted as our family and friends in other parts of the world.

As the holiday season continues, I was reminded of holiday origins and how convoluted our current practices are. I’m putting watching Elf on hold for just a second to reflect on something we often forget during the merriment and cheer.

“‘Mercy’ is the self-moved, spontaneous compassion of God for the miserable and distressed, freeing the sinner from the consequent misery of his sins.”

D. Edmond Hiebert

I started reading through 1 Timothy and when I came across the typical greeting, it was easy to gloss over these trifecta of words: grace, mercy and peace. So instead of running to the next verse, I wanted to hone in on the word “mercy.”

One of the more painful aspects of moving overseas was the parting away from the books I had collected. Due to spacing issues, we could only bring what was deemed most important and needed. Because of this, a lot of good books got left behind or given away. One particular book that was painfully left behind was Maurice Roberts’s book The Thought of God. This was a book that really impacted me while in seminary as it proved to be both a theological and pastoral treasure chest for my heart.

There is a saying that you could read the Bible over and over again, and from time to time you’ll come across a detail in Scripture that you missed and find to be insightful and convicting. 1 Samuel 14:52 is one of those verses for me recently. It states: