We’ve all had those times that we either had a song stuck in our head for what felt like weeks or loved a song so much, we would put that song on repeat for hours, or even days on end. Either way, it would take a long time for that song to get out of our heads. Today’s verses all sound similar, but they echo a wonderful refrain: “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, his mercy endures forever.” Mercy and love are used interchangeably because to God, they are one and the same. That declaration of God’s enduring mercy and love becomes like that song that gets stuck in our head, whether we like it or not.
Psalm 136 reads like a litany with every verse ending with “for his mercy endures forever.” The repetition transforms into resonations in our hearts. Which brings up a question: Why all the repetition? To be honest, it’s because we have a hard time believing it. We live in a world where nothing really lasts forever. The latest clothing fad is gone in a matter of weeks, the latest news disaster changes within the hour, and relationships end either with some kind of breakup, disinterest, or death. All of these things come and go, but God’s mercy is the one thing that never has an expiration date.
Psalm 89:28 to me reminds me of Jesus, who God made to rule. But think about John 3:16 for a second: God loves us so much that He sent his firstborn, the Son of the Most High, to save us and through Jesus’s death and resurrection, we became his brothers and sisters. We become kings and queens, princes and princesses, through His infinite and enduring mercy. Let that thought sink in for a second: in God’s eyes, you are worthy of being royalty. It’s not because of any accomplishes or liabilities you think you might have, but instead, it’s from His infinite love for you.
Keep this in mind: The mercy of the Lord endures forever. Meditate on Psalm 136 until you truly believe it in your heart. Let’s continue to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet as a way of building trust in God and in His infinite love and mercy and end the Chaplet with this prayer for today: “O my Creator and Father of great mercy, I trust in You, for You are Goodness Itself.” (Diary 908)
- Monique Ocampo
