Keep Mercy In Mind

A Reflection on the Psalm for September 27th, 2020:
Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

---

Psalm 25

R. Lord, be mindful of your mercy.

Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth, and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation. 

R. Lord, be mindful of your mercy.

Be mindful of your mercy, O Lord, and of your steadfast love, for they have been from of old. According to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness, O Lord! 

R. Lord, be mindful of your mercy.

Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. 

R. Lord, be mindful of your mercy.

Pause. Pray.

And then read more...

Be mindful of your mercy…

This psalm of David tells of the many times that he did not act in God’s ways. At the same time that he prays for the Lord to teach him the way to the right path, he invokes the Lord’s mercy on all of his transgressions.

“What would Jesus do?” was a mantra especially for the youth in the recent past. While it still holds true, not too many people say it nowadays. The world seems to have changed drastically in the past decade. 

The developments in technology have greatly aided mankind in general. We get results faster, we are able to do things remotely, and we are able to increase our productivity in a shorter period of time.

This is especially evident in this time of pandemic. While socially and physically distancing ourselves from others, we are still able to communicate with our friends, still eat food from our favourite restaurants, and for some of us, still earn a living as we work from home. Some of the businesses are still able to operate. We are able to attend church services and hold prayer meetings online and even pray over people! This is good, right?

This same technology however, makes it equally possible for all the negative in social media that we can think of — pornography, hate videos, violence, drugs — to thrive. Defamatory speech and slander now seem to be an everyday occurrence. We hear and read about them everyday. Technology makes that possible.

There is indeed much that we should ask mercy for from the Lord. Now more than ever is His mercy needed. There are so many sins: even those of omission and procrastination that we are guilty of! Lord have mercy! 

For the last six months, I have spent most of my time home, distancing myself physically. While not too fond of watching TV, I find myself watching the news most often and trying to find out what’s happening around the world. I end up upset, angry, and repeatedly expressing the things which anger me. I didn’t even think of praying for those who upset me. Only recently did it dawn on me that I was contributing to the negativity around me.
I got sucked into it. This is the time we need to get down on our knees to pray and intercede for others, most especially those who are not in a position to pray. They need our prayers.

Reflecting on this psalm reminded me that I need to ask for the Lord’s mercy not only for myself but also for others. I need to pray that God, in His loving mercy, may shower His grace — even upon those who do not think that they need it.




Liz Venezuela
​

---