SCRIPTURE
Prov. 3:3-4 NKJV Let not mercy and truth forsake you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart, And so find favor and high esteem in the sight of God and man.

NUGGET
Many times in scripture, mercy and truth are linked together. Why are we instructed to live by both? Think of one without the other...truth without mercy makes us legalistic. We become judgmental toward others and live trying to earn. On the other hand, mercy without truth is lawlessness and recklessness. Sin flourishes without the boundaries of truth. Living by both mercy and truth leads us in the way of freedom and safety. It helps to keep us from falling while living without fear of condemnation.

ACTIVATION
Ask yourself these questions. Do you tend to think you have to live as perfectly as you can, otherwise you won’t measure up? Or do you tend to think it doesn’t matter if you live by God’s Word, since you’re saved? How does this affect the way you see yourself? The way you treat others?

PRAYER
Father, let my life be a reflection of mercy and truth toward others and myself. Let me not compromise truth while also remembering that we are saved by grace through faith and not by works. Thank you, Lord, for leading me in the way of freedom and safety.

Devo by Leah Paschall
Photo by Dino Reichmuth on Unsplash