Merciful Mom

“Grace is especially associated with men in their sins; mercy is especially associated with men in their misery. In other words, while grace looks down upon sin as a whole, mercy looks especially upon the miserable consequences of sin. So that mercy really means a sense of pity plus a desire to relieve the suffering. That is the essential meaning of being merciful; it is pity plus the action. So the Christian has a feeling of pity. His concern about the misery of men and women leads to an anxiety to relieve it.”  D Martin Lloyd-Jones from Studies in Sermon on the Mount, pg. 99

One of my first thoughts in reading this was with regard to being a mother. How many opportunities do I have to show mercy to the children God has entrusted to me. How often have I seen my children miserable in their sins? Their hearts left unsatisfied by leisure and entertainment. Their idolatrous cravings for power and control leaving them angry and at war with others.  Such familiar misery!

Is my heart, “I told you so…”

Is my heart, “this is a huge inconvenience to my plans!”

Is my heart, “One day they’ll learn their lesson”

Is my heart, “How could you?”

What conviction I am experiencing over a lack of mercy for my children in their all-too-familiar struggles with sin. Many times I avoid the opportunity to intervene, to take action on their behalf, to show them mercy. Other times when I intervene it is at least partly because their sin is hooking one of my own idols.  I don’t think I ever connected these issues in my mothering with a lack of mercy.  When I ignore their sin, I am not being merciful. When I reduce discipline to managing behavior, I’m not being merciful. When I am lazy, indulgent, or harsh and manipulative, I am obviously not showing mercy.

Being a merciful mom is more than kissing a boo-boo, or soothing a sick child. It is being part of the rescue mission when my child chooses to live for self rather than live for God. And the goal isn’t just to show him mercy, but to bring him to the source of all mercy: the cross of Jesus Christ. And here at the cross a sinful mom and a sinful child lift their gaze to a merciful Savior and find that He demonstrated the greatest act of mercy ever when He took our place on the cross. Part of my calling as a mother, as a believer, is to show mercy. This begins with those right here in my home.  Blessed are the merciful, indeed!