the economy of mercy.

"in the economy of mercy, I am a poor and begging man....in the currency of grace, is where my song begins."

I was in the city earlier today with my aunt & cousin and we were asked repeatedly for money by homeless people. as believers, we all struggled with whether to give or not to give. none of us really felt led in any way to give, but didn't want to lie either, ya know?
but in the city, you're just bombarded over and over...
and it's easy to become completely numb to the brokenness of the world.

on the train back I was listening to my ipod on shuffle and the switchfoot song "economy of mercy" came on. my soul perked up a bit when I heard the line, "in the economy of mercy, I am a poor and begging man."

my mind attempted to pull pieces together, as if trying to put together a huge puzzle. then I heard the line, "we are bruised and broken masterpieces, but we did not paint ourselves."

I can't sit here and pretend to know anything at all of life on the streets or the pathway that leads to begging. but I have seen this... there's something about persistence.

I fail him over and over again. I deny him and feel such deep shame. I walk up to him time and again and ask, "could you spare me some mercy?" and he reaches out & pours grace into my beggar's cup. then, I forget the value of the grace he gave me. and I say again, "could you spare me some mercy?" and he once again gives me grace.

this week I keep coming back to the story of the prodigal son. and I think there's something with that, too. but that's for another day.