Names of God: Through Thanksgiving & Christmasናሙና

John shares God’s heart for His people.  God loved so He gave. God loved us while we were in sin with a sacrificial, unconditional love. Because of His love, He gave us Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus, we have the opportunity and the privilege to call Him our Father. God, because of His rich mercy and great love, even while we were in sin showered us full of mercy and drowned us in His love. Our God does nothing small. When God gives, He gives generously in abundance, overflowing, and never ending.  Mercy is not getting what we deserve. It's being in the wrong, yet not receiving the punishment we deserve. Mercy is something we desperately need from God, or we are utterly without hope. Mercy is the demonstration of God’s great love for us. We were blindly amusing ourselves in sin… but God loved us. We were running towards hell… but God sacrificed His Son. We were dying without hope… but God had mercy on us. Because of the Name above All Names… Jesus.  Because of Jesus, we have everlasting life.  Because of Jesus, we are redeemed. Because of Jesus, we are free from sin.  Because of Jesus, we have God, the Holy Spirit, within us to give us power over sin.  

Jesus’ great and abundant mercy continues even after a believer is saved. Whenever we make decisions without consulting Him, when we seek convenience and ease over sacrifice and service, when we speed and run red lights, when we slack at the job, when we mistreat people around us, when we spend our money on pleasure before our tithes and our bills, when we deny His people our loving behavior, our gracious attitude, and our forgiveness: God still shows us mercy each and every day. 

Have you accepted God’s gift of love and great mercy by accepting Jesus Christ as your Savior? Are you taking the Lord’s love and mercy for granted? God’s love is meant to transform us so that each day we look and act a little more and more like Jesus. Are you walking in the mercy and love of God, confident that your sin has been forgiven and forgotten? God’s mercy frees us from the bondage of sin in our past, so there is no point in holding onto it.  Are you pouring out love and mercy to those around you? God overflows love and mercy in our lives each day, so that we have plenty available to pour into the lives of people around us.  

Father God, I thank You for Your Son Jesus Christ who has made me free. Lord, I understand that this freedom came at a great price, so prevent me from taking Your sacrifice for me for granted. I thank You for Your faithfulness and Your mercy to transform me into Your new creation. Lord, never let me get so prideful or so downcast that I forget from where You have brought me.  Remind me that the way that I can show You gratitude each day is by speaking of Your power in and throughout my life. I thank You that I can come to You with anything big or small, share my needs with You, and know that You will always intervene on my behalf.  Because I have been blessed with Your overflowing mercy, help me to bless others with mine. In Jesus’ name. Amen.    
 

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