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Meeting Mercy

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Meeting Mercy A D E V O T I O N A L B Y H E I D I T A I meeting mercy S T O R I E S O F R E J E C T S & R E B E L S R E D E E M E D B Y M E R C Y Contents Patron Recognition.......................................................................1 Introduction..................................................................................2 Zacchaeus: The Sinner Who Was Seen.......................................4 The Followers Of Little Faith......................................................7 The Poor Widow Of Mighty Faith..............................................9 The Samaritan Woman Quenched By Living Water................11 The Sinful Woman Who Loved Much......................................13 The Family Jesus Loved..............................................................15 Mary: The Woman Who Wasted On Jesus................................17 The Adulterous Woman Shielded By Mercy............................21 The Unfaithful Friends He Loved To The End.......................24 Peter: The Coward Redeemed By Love....................................26 The Criminal Welcomed Into Paradise....................................29 Thomas: The Sceptic Who Touched God's Scars.....................31 Saul: The Good Guy Who Got It All Wrong.............................34 The Bleeding Woman Named A Daughter...............................37 Meet The Author........................................................................42 Become A Patron For Words Of Hope.....................................43 © 2020 Heidi Tai All Rights Reserved. WITH GRATITUDE TO MY PATRONS: A A R O N L E E A D A M C ' H N G A D D I E L ' E S T R E L L E B I L L Y L A M C A I T L Y N M O Y D I A N A B A C K H O U S E E I L E E N W A N G E L E A N O R L A I E L I A C H E N E U N I C E K I E M G A R Y H I L L G R A C E L A M H A Y L E Y S E T O J A M E S T R U O N G J A N E K A N G J A N E K I M J E N N Y Y A U J I M A S H B U R N J O Y C E C H E N K A W O N G K A T H Y C H U N G K A T R I N A T S E N G K E I T H W O N G M A B E L J O E M A R Y J U N G M A T T H E W C H A N M E G A N W A L S H M E L T R U O N G M I C H A E L W O N G N A T A S H A L O N I C O L E T H A I O W E N S E T O P H I L I P T H A I R E B E C C A B A I L E Y S A L L Y H O N G S A M M I E Y I P S T E V E K R Y G E R S U S A N Y E E S Y L V I A Z H E N G S Z E M I N N G W E N D A Y C H U W I L S O N M O Y Z O E S I M B A G A C T I V E P A T R O N S A S O F 2 9 A P R I L 2 0 2 0 C O V E R A R T B Y S H A N E L I M P A G E 1 | M E E T I N G M E R C Y Introduction Unclean. Unworthy. Unwelcome. I am no stranger to such labels. For many years, the voice of condemnation made me hide from God and others behind masks and walls. Playing the part of both reject and rebel, my performances left me crushed with guilt and shame, until one day, I found myself weeping at Jesus’ feet, wondering whether I would ever be ‘good enough’ for him. The kingdom didn’t come for women like me–or so I thought. After pleading for answers, Jesus began to unveil his mercies through the pages of the Bible. Like a mirror to my inmost being, the Word unveiled my shame and unmasked my secrets but where I deserved condemnation I received compassion and where I expected mockery, I was washed with mercy. Even under a divine microscope, my broken heart stood still, for it was being pieced together by nail pierced hands. This devotional will help you to explore Jesus’ interactions with people who have felt unclean, unworthy and unwelcome. Combining truth and beauty, theology and poetry, this resource will help you walk in the shoes of rejects and rebels as they come face-to-face with the God of mercy. It is my prayer that readers will walk away with a richer understanding of the gospel, a renewed love for Jesus, and a restored confidence in amazing grace that welcomes sinners home. P A G E 2 | M E E T I N G M E R C Y The Deceiver demanded trust– the fool complied, intoxicated by false promises of life, she emptied herself for a lie. (once was blind) P H O T O : K A T Z I A J A Z W I N K S A Zacchaeus T H E S I N N E R W H O W A S S E E N For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. (Luke 19:10) Read: Luke 19:1–10 By the Lunar calendar I was born in the year of the Dragon, which according to Chinese tradition, is an incredibly lucky thing. The only mythical creature of all Chinese Zodiac signs, the Dragon is revered and considered a source of success and good fortune. The reality is, I grew up feeling like an insignificant fly on the wall. Born as an ‘accident’ to immigrant parents who worked four jobs to put food on the table, I grew up feeling unseen and unheard. My loneliness led me down a path of teenage rebellion as I grasped for worth and relationship in all the wrong places. The Deceiver promised me life, and I foolishly emptied myself for a lie. The Dragon’s fortune never came. At church, I was the girl that made people feel intimidated and suspicious. Why was I there? What did I want? No matter how hard I tried to fit in with modesty and 'Christianese', I still stuck out like a sore thumb. I knew I had flaws but I didn’t know how to change. Sometimes I would hear whispers which affirmed my unwelcome. Bad influence. Be careful. Sinner. With laughter and jokes, I pretended not to care. Dragons breathe fire–they don’t have time for tears. Nobody knew that I was actually a fly. I wonder if Zacchaeus had a similar story? Small and overlooked, unseen and unheard. He was not the type of guy who would grow up to be a hero. One day, the Deceiver shows up to promise him wealth and status and he takes the bait to satisfy his greed. Tax collectors were scum. They robbed others to become rich. They used their power for evil. They betrayed their own people in order to support a brutal and corrupt regime. Powered by greed, Zacchaeus ruthlessly plowed through the system in order to reach the top of the corporate ladder. He becomes the chief tax collector sitting on a mountain of stolen wealth. Seen at last. And yet I wonder if the dollars ever satisfied? Whether his wealth was worth the social and spiritual isolation? In Hebrew the name ‘Zacchaeus’ means ‘clean’, and yet he chose to bear the shame and name of a sinner. I wonder what motivated Zacchaeus to climb a tree in search of Jesus? Perhaps the more that his riches increased, the more he was emptied of his soul. Perhaps he realised that money doesn’t satisfy. Perhaps he had heard that Jesus was a great healer and that people who entered his presence could have their sins forgiven and their joy restored. We don’t know his motive, but what we do know is that Zacchaeus scrambles up a fig tree to catch a glimpse of Jesus. It’s an act so shameless and reeking of desperation. The crowd probably scoffed. Don’t waste your time. Jesus doesn’t associate with sinners like you. P A G E 4 | M E E T I N G M E R C Y And this is why I adore this story, because Mercy knocks at the sinner’s door. As Jesus walks past the fig tree, he stops in his tracks, sees the ‘small’ guy, and calls him by name. Jesus then invites himself to stay at the sinner’s house. What mercy! The sinner didn’t have to beg or grovel. He didn't have to show off a track record of good works. He didn’t have to wash his hands, or to justify why he had failed to live up to his name. Instead, the Seeker of sinners initiates a relationship and the sinner accepts with gladness.
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