The Fruit of Mercy

Why do we call one of our homes, the Mercy Home?

Mercy comes from mercy. Our mercy extended to each other (to our Little Sisters), comes from God’s mercy to us. Our desire and ability to show mercy flows from a real feeling of overwhelming gratitude flooding our hearts, that we owe everything we are and have to God’s lavished mercy upon us.

In Matthew 9:10-13 we read: And as he sat at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

In this passage, we see Jesus quote Hosea 6:6, “I desire mercy and not sacrifice.” This Old Testament passage is where God is accusing the people that their love is like the dew on the grass. It is there for a brief morning hour, and then is gone, and all that is left is the empty form of burnt offerings. The point is that God wants His people to be alive in their hearts. He wants them to have feelings of affection toward Him, revealed in mercy toward each other. He does not want a people who do their religious duties in a mechanical or heartless way.

The proof of our ‘spiritual pudding’ is in our ability to see distress, to feel pity, and provide relief in righteous, strategic, joyful, and generous ways.

Thank you for extending your hand and heart to these beautiful young lives – for they are the ‘fruit of mercy.’