May the Lord’s love, mercy wash over us

In my morning time of devotion and reflection, I watched the rain pouring down.

The water ran down the church parking lot. The water ran with such vigor it looked like waves that crash along a sandy Florida seashore. The only thing different was the water was flowing over the grass.

It was the first time since the flood in 2017 that I did not get nervous during a heavy rain.

Actually, as the rain poured down, a feeling of refreshing peace washed over me.

I watched as the deep rain cleansed everything and that is when I began to pray, “Dear Lord, that is exactly what our society needs, a deep cleansing.”

It is amazing how quickly things have become extremely difficult.

From Covid-19 to social injustice, to every other thing that seems to be choking the life out of this nation.

We have been the strongest military force in the history of the world.

We have led the way around the globe in humanitarian efforts and have advanced talks of peace around the world.

I remember 15 years ago a friend of mine was telling me about a conversation they had with a government official from Israel. They were making a comparison back then between the security of Israel and the United States.

The government official when talking about Israel said, “In Israel, our borders are dangerous, but our cities are safe and secure. Unlike the United States, where your borders are safe, but your cities are dangerous.”

In my own opinion, 15 years later, neither our borders nor our cities are safe and secure.

We have identified that we have an enemy that is trying to destroy us.

The problem is, you can’t fight this enemy with guns and boots on the ground, but rather a mirror would be more effective. That is correct, we have become our own enemy. We are imploding from the inside out.

The weapons of mass destruction have been located, and they are in the form of mouths and tongues, pride, envy and strife. The weapons are loaded with opinions, anger, rage, greed , jealousy, discord and those bullets are held in clips of selfishness.

Everybody knows how to fix everything, and we think it starts with removing the speck out of our neighbors eye yet we have a plank sticking out of our own.

My objective is not to depress the reader; however, I think I may have a solution.

The solution starts with me and it starts with you. The solution is self- reflection.

It’s time to pull out the mirror to reflect and pray, “Create in me a clean heart oh God, and renew a right spirit in me.”

Ephesians 4:32 reads, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ Jesus God forgave you.”

We need the grace of God to wash over us.

May we not be throwers of stones, but rather may we humble ourselves in the sight of God and in due time the scripture says he will lift us up.

May our hearts be filled with compassion and not hatred. May the church be the church the Lord Jesus Christ has called us to be. A people who hide the word of God in our hearts, so that we would not sin against God.

The Apostle Peter wrote in 1 Peter 4:8, “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.”

We need as a nation to stop and let the presence of God wash over us. We need our minds renewed and refocused. We, as believers, need to pray and seek the face of God. It is our responsibility.

2 Chronicles 7:14, “If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, seek my face and turn from their wicked ways I will heal their land.”

If we ever need the Lord, it is now. Lord, may your love and mercy wash over us today.

Dave Truncone is the pastor of First Assembly of God Church in Van Buren. He and his wife, Heidi, have been married 26 years. They have two daughters, Hannah, 20, and Abigail, 16. They have lived in Van Buren for nine years.

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Editor’s Note: This is a regular series featuring area religious leaders writing about faith, family and community. To participate or suggest a church, contact us at news@darnews.com or 573-785-1414. The views expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of the DAR.