Mercy Monday

Relationships--what comes to your mind? Rewarding, wonderful, hard, stressful, exciting, challenging, encouraging, confusing? Relationships tend to go up and down, some short and some standing the tests of time. A good relationship will have difficulties, but can work through the problems, has good communication, is honest and trustworthy. Good relationships do not happen by accident or with a bunch of do's and don'ts. There are boundaries and there are some rules, but the motivation, the balance is love.

Monday leading up to Good Friday found Jesus leaving the friendly party in Bethany, special oil poured over him, and having the city of Jerusalem celebrating his arrival with palm branches and singing. Monday saw a fig tree without fruit when there should have been fruit. Jesus said this fig tree never would bear fruit. A busy day preparing for the Passover celebration found lots of profiters in the temple taking money that did not belong to them from the visitors wanting to come and worship. Jesus cleaned His house saying His house is a house of prayer. Jesus did not come to give a bunch of rules and regulations for us to never quite measure up to. He came to have a relationship with each person.

We are not one of the crowd in God's eyes. He sees each of us and knows us by name. He created us to do all the plans He desires for us, plans for a hope and a future. Not our plans and not our rules. We can't keep all the rules. We've broken our relationship with God, each of us doing what we want to do ourselves. But while we were still away from God (sinners), Christ died for us. Good Friday for us. Love for us. A relationship with us that will stand the tests of life, show us His purpose, give us His plan. A loving relationship that gives us a reason to live each day.

This week, remember the fig tree that shriveled up and died. Rules without relationship cannot bear fruit. Do not forget the ones trying to get in the way of worshippers looking to gain for themselves. Those rules with the cards stacked in their favor were cleared out and prayer invited in. Think about God reaching out to you personally. His invitation to you to follow fully trusting Him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Consider His Word, the Bible, and important verses and stories from the Bible that have impacted your life.

If I were to map my life out in words or verses from the Bible, it would look like this:

2 Peter 3:18

Proverbs 3:5-6

Psalm 116:1-2 Isaiah 43:1 Jeremiah 31:3

Isaiah 40:11

Psalm 121

Psalm 67:1-2

Psalm 119:173-174

Psalm 139:13-14

Jeremiah 1:5

Psalm 147:11

Psalm 22:9-10

Psalm 1:1-3

Psalm 71:5-6

Psalm 147:3 and Psalm 147:1

Philippians 2:12-15 (Keep On!)

Acts 20:24

What would your verses look like? There's been many over the years, but these verses from The Bible have been tried and proven and are pillars in my life. These verses are from God to me personally and how thankful I am. See if you can list some of your own verses God has given you. If you are not sure where to start, this week read the book of John--the 4th book in the New Testament of the Bible. God will lovingly guide us step by step, verse by verse. ...Mama says.

c. MamaSays 2025