God Being Rich In Mercy - Huh?

Bringing ourselves back to the cross....what does that really mean?

Hard to explain but when someone had a conversation with me about forgiveness, being tongue tied wasn't a viable option especially when I too am just as sinful.

Now, I'm trying to put my thoughts down...

Bringing ourselves back to the cross can be taken as a picture..or we can use it as an imagery. Why? It forces us to look at Christ by taking us back to the very act He did for us back then, to remind us to the core about love & grace. I personally always find myself in a very sombre mood when I have to think about the cross or when communion is served. It gives me the chills as I being the weirdo I am, I can't help but play back the moments of Christ death in my head - let alone after watching the nailing on the cross & the suffering of Jesus dramatised thru the Passion Movie.

I think I am still a shithead in many ways & most times I struggle with the idea of whether God still forgives me. I struggle to the point where I feel the misery of so many conflicting things that my life compresses. Funny enough, God still loves me, being rich in mercy, He always forgives - it is a divine action on our behalf through which He brings about a sense of relief to us, the offender ( when we realise our wrong or when we confess it) by giving us the peace & assurance that hey, its ok because that is God's mercy at work. I can only say I am no saint...I fail, I fall, I give in to temptation, I turn away from God when I feel like it....You know ,sometimes I think God needs to spend so much extra time to get my attention...and to do that He needs to remind me of how undeserving I am of His grace. But yet, He always gives me that conviction to acknowledge my weakness & my sin before him & in turn I seriously do experience the freedom & relief He showers me . Yes, i do feel guilt free & the forgiveness comes with freedom from that sin - that agony - that misery. It all goes once we experience His mercy and grace. You may ask A HOLY GOD AND A SINFUL PERSON?? How does that work? The connecting link between a holy God & a sinful person is God's love which activates His grace, which in turn, sets in motion His mercy. They're like dominoes that bump up against each other. He loves us not because of something in ourselves but because of something in Himself. And in His love, He demonstrates His grace, whcih brings forgiveness. On top of that, grace prompts mercy ...and there ...mercy brings you a relief & sense of freedom..

St. Augustine wrote "Entrust the past to God's mercy; the present to His love and the future to His providence"

God being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive with Christ, and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus, in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus - Ephesians 2 vs 4-7 -