Why the Title?

I figured that the title of this blog is odd enough that it deserves some explanation before I do anything else. For the last year now I have had the tag line of this blog as my MSN Messenger tag line as well. And yes, that is Koine (Biblical) Greek that you should be seeing it in up top. There is such depth to this simple saying that I find myself returning over and over to think and meditate on what is means.

"Lord" in Greek is a direct appeal to God through Jesus Christ. We do not have to go through anyone or anything else. When I am feeling like my prayer are hitting a brick wall or when I am am just hearing other Christian leaders talk about their special way of reaching God, their plan that ever good believer should follow, I think back to this simple word. I do not have to talk about God, I do not have to go through anyone else. I can speak simply and straight to my Lord, me God.

"have mercy" in Greek is an appeal, a request. And the way it is formed it is a request for mercy over everything. I have such a hard time occasionally remembering that I am really completely forgiven. There aren't little pieces of my life that God refuses to forgive, that God won't heal me from. When I ask for mercy, for forgiveness, I get it, and I get it on everything I ask for. This is request, "Lord have mercy" is a prayer directly to God asking for forgiveness, love, and peace over everything we have done. It is asking for God to be kind to our failings, forgive us, and love us anyway, even though we know we have been morons. And God will grant that request.

"on us". So often I lose sight that while I can know and love God, and be known and loved by God, in a personal way, I am not walking this path alone. My sins are not unique, my troubles are not unique, not even my successes are unique. We are walking this path together, and the troubles of my brother and sister should bring me to prayer as quickly as my own. We are in this together.

"Your children" is the final phrase and what a phrase it is. There is this idea floating around Christianity that God is out to get us, that we are indentured servants who work off our sins to God through serving God during our lives. That is not true. We become God's children, loved and cared for as any child. We do not earn this gift of love and mercy. Instead, it is freely given and what we do is not out of trying to pay God back, but is because those we love we try to serve.

There is almost always some part of this saying that I need to remember, and believe. And so as this blog is mainly the spiritual musings of a young pastor I thought it was appropriate to title it one of the sayings that I most frequently muse on. That way I don't have to post on it every other day when some part of it makes me think or reminds me of something I have forgotten.