Day 7

Mercy

READ

John 8:2-11 New Living Translation (NLT)

REFLECT

How often are we like the Pharisees? Are we quick to judge? Quick to point of the mistakes of our brothers and sisters? Do we use the mistakes of others to justify our own bad behavior and patterns?

In these verses Jesus reminds us that we are all broken and sinners, no one is better than the next. In a society that measures worthiness by good deeds, material possessions and by the number of followers on social media platforms it becomes increasingly competitive and hard to see others as human beings, which are first and foremost broken and flawed. We all carry burdens, mistakes and shame, but it is by the Grace of God that we are covered. It is not something we deserve or can earn.

I’ve been working with survivors of human trafficking for 8 years and some of my most memorable moments early on in my career was in our first tiny drop-in center. I would constantly ask the women how they liked the drop-in center or if they found it helpful in hopes to gain information that we could use to improve our services. I specifically remember many of the women sharing that the reason they kept coming back was because they did not feel judged and they were continually welcomed back no matter. Some would even go as far to say “You know what I am, right? Do you know what we do?” It was as if they felt unworthy of our services. Or that if we knew what had happened to them, they would be asked to leave.

Those conversations are forever engraved in my head and taught me powerful lessons early on. These women are often pushed on the outskirts of society, judged, and viewed as less than. However, God calls us to love our neighbors as ourselves and we are reminded that we all made right before God because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the Cross. This is the type of compassion that we are called to demonstrate.

RESPOND

Take some time to reflect on this passage and ask God to reveal His word to you. Think about the last person to whom you extended grace. Could you get better in this area? People come to know Christ by how well we love others. Make it your mission today to love the unlovable, to love those that society is quick to judge. Be like Jesus. We try to live this out at our New Day Drop-in in Philadelphia. We try to be the hands and feet of Jesus to those who need it most.

RECEIVE

Father God we thank you for this reminder of compassion and grace. I commit myself to be your vessel and to extend grace to others just as you have done for me. Father God, I lift every single victim of human trafficking up to You. You know them by name, and you love them. I pray for their recovery and restoration, and I know you have beautiful plans for their lives.