It was God’s mercy and compassion that moved Jesus to raise the dead son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:13). That widow had lost the last person in the world who would take care of her, and when Jesus saw her weeping, mercy overtook Him and He was compelled to bring her boy back to life.
Jesus didn’t shower that kind of compassion on just a couple of isolated individuals. He didn’t have mercy on only a few folks here and there. Matthew 9:36 says that “… when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.”
Think about that. Through Jesus, God proved that He has compassion for everybody. He has mercy for multitudes!
I could go on and on giving scriptural evidence of that mercy. We could talk about the story of Jonah, for instance. We could talk about how God so desperately wanted to show mercy to the wicked city of Ninevah that He drove an unwilling prophet (by way of a whale!) to preach to them so they could repent.
We could talk about David, the man who knew God’s heart better than any other Old Testament saint. We could read Psalms chapter 136 where he recounted the mighty works God had done throughout Israel’s history and followed every incident with the exclamation, “For His mercy endures forever!”
I believe we should all read through the Bible at least once for the express purpose of seeing with a fresh eye all the merciful acts and ways of the Lord. That, more than anything else, would help us get a better revelation of God’s mercy. It would make us better pray-ers and better receivers by giving us a greater comprehension of the magnitude of His love.
Scripture Reading: Jonah 3:1 – 10; 4:1 – 11
On the chilly March night in 1972 when Lynne Hammond took her first step into a life of Spirit-led prayer, she had no idea what was about to happen. All she knew was the hunger in her heart for God wouldn’t let her sleep. In the few short months she’d been born again, her desire to fellowship with Him had grown so strong she could hardly contain it. “Help me, God!” she cried. “I want to know you. I want to be able to talk to you. Please, teach me to pray!”
Suddenly, a heavenly presence flooded the room. Lynne sensed waves of spiritual fire sweeping over her and a beautiful language began to flow like a river from within her. Although she’d never heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, she knew instantly, without a doubt—this was God!
What began that night soon blossomed into a life of prayer that ultimately became a ministry of prayer when, in 1980, Lynne and her husband, Mac, founded Living Word Christian Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Under Lynne’s leadership, the prayer ministry at Living Word has become an internationally recognized model for developing effective pray-ers in the local church.
A teacher and an author, Lynne publishes a newsletter called Prayer Notes, has written numerous books, and currently serves as the national prayer director for Daughters for Zion. Her passion for inspiring and leading others into the life of Spirit-led prayer continues to take her around the world to minister to believers whose heart cry, like hers, is “Lord, teach me to pray!”