Tuesday, December 05, 2006

No Expiration Date

I usually cringe when I read the quotes outside church buildings. Sometimes they just seem too corny, sometimes I think they're just a total turn off to the unbeliever who drives by and reads them, and I wonder what's the point! But today, outside one church I drove by on the way home from the hospital, I was apprehended by one.
The quote was simple, "Mercy has no expiration date."
Now it might just be the kind of day I was having, but it hit me hard. Not only was it good to be reminded that "the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, and His mercies never come to an end", but on a more personal level, I was reminded that the mercy I extend to others should 'have no expiration date' either. I am commanded to extend mercy and forgiveness 70 times 7. Today I needed to be reminded of how much mercy has been extended to me, an endless amount; and I needed to be reminded that if I am seeking to live a "Sermon on the Mount Lifestyle", then I am commanded to extend that same level of mercy to others.