Lynn Coulter - Little Mercies: Celebrating Gods Everyday Grace and Goodness

Praise for Little Mercies

Little Mercies is a spiritually uplifting book that teaches through a number of engaging stories of everyday people, everyday occurrences that God's grace is ever ready, ever present.

New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Debbie Macomber

Little Mercies is a delightful collection of simple, yet profound truths graciously offered to both challenge and encourage the heart. With tender honesty Lynn writes as one leaning across her kitchen table, grasping the hands of her guest and speaking words of hope, peace, joy, and mercy. Lynn will call you to find that pause in the busyness of your daily life. And if you answer her call, you will be rewarded with the authentic hope of a newer, richer rhythm of "little mercies" in your days.

Fil Anderson, author of Running on Empty: Contemplative Spirituality for Overachievers and Breaking the Rules: Trading Performance for Intimacy with God

Reading Lynn Coulter's graceful, lyrical essays is like finding a new friend. She takes you to unusual places, introduces you to interesting people, and helps you see and hear things with new eyes and ears. Lynn calls herself "a pushover for heroic tales and long-ago stories," which explains her own storytelling gifts, leading you from real-life stories to biblical analogies in a subtle, seamless way. The woman can flat write.

Liz Curtis Higgs, best-selling author of Bad Girls of the Bible

Lynn Coulter's voice is a fresh perspective on two important ancient truths of the Biblegrace and mercy are the sustaining substances of a Christian life. When you read this book, you will be gently reminded of that.

Ronda Rich, best-selling author of What Southern Women Know About Faith

Copyright 2011 by Lynn Coulter

All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

978-0-8054-4935-8

Published by B&H Publishing Group

Nashville, Tennessee

Dewey Decimal Classification: 231.8

Subject Heading: CHRISTIAN LIFE \ SPIRITUAL LIFE \ GOD

Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations have been taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, Copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible, Holman CSB and HCSB are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) have been taken from the Holy Bible, King James Version.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 15 14 13 12 11

This little book is offered in loving memory of Emma Claire Key: proof, if ever it was needed, that God's most precious blessings come in small packages.

Acknowledgments

As always, to Bill and Michael, with forever-love.

To Mary Wyman and Roseanne Key, whose friendships I cherish. Mary, thank you for walking alongside me as I wrote. I'm grateful for your encouragement, prayers, and insightful reading.

To Thomas Walters, who first welcomed me into the B&H Publishing family and introduced me to the good people who share God's Word with readers everywhere.

To my former editors at Delta SkyDavid Bailey, Mickey McLean, and Britta Waller, and to publisher Duncan Christy: thank you for your excellent editorial guidance over the years. Some of the essays in this book appeared in Sky in different forms.

May God bless you, Kristi Cole and family, for sharing Brody's story. Brody taught us to celebrate every day of life, and his legacy is one of hope and faith.

Last, yet first above all, thank you, heavenly Father, for every good gift.

"I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer... because I have you in my heart, and you are all partners with me in grace..." (Phil. 1:34, 7).

Contents

The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.

Psalm 145:9 KJV

Introduction

Thou has given me so much... give me one thing more, a grateful heart.

George Herbert

How's your heart?

I'm not talking about your resting pulse rate or what kind of cholesterol meds you're supposed to take each morning. I'm talking about your spiritual heart, the place where your joy livesor where it should live.

You've probably read what the psalmist once said about living a happy life: "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it" (Ps. 118:24). But the truth is that real joythat deep, unquenchable, wonder-full feeling that comes from knowing and loving God, and feeling him love you backis missing from a lot of our ordinary lives.

And after all, what are we supposed to be so happy about nowadays? All we have to do is look around to see that we're living in a broken, fallen world.

Those of us who live in big cities know what it's like to crawl to work each day through heavy traffic, the skies as gray as granite overhead, and the air smelling of diesel fumes and other pollutants. Some of us are struggling to care for aging, ailing parents or to keep our young children safe in public schools and parksworse, some of us are caught in a generation sandwich, trying to manage both at the same time.

Every time we spin the dial on the radio, we're reminded that threats to world peace and security abound in distant lands, and that frightening diseases are starting to hop from continent to continent almost overnight on commercial jets. In fact, there's so much bad news that it's fair to ask: Is there any other kind?

Yes, there is. There is some very Good News indeed, and it has a name: Jesus.

If you haven't met him before, it's time you were introduced. If you already know him, but you're living a life that feels weighed down with trouble or despair, then you need to know him a whole lot better. This little book yearns to help you do just that.

But let's agree on one thing right up front. No ostriches should read these pages. Even though I'm about to ask you to dive deep into the ocean of God's astounding love and immerse yourself in his endless, life-giving grace and mercy, we believers don't get a pass to bury our heads in the sand or hide our eyes behind our Bibles and ignore suffering and pain. As Christians, we are called to love and minister to a hurting world. It's our privilege to serve as good stewards of everything God has given us, so there's no ducking out or playing dumb here. We still have to pay attention to need wherever it exists and to work hard to clean up our messes wherever we find them. We have a calling to uphold; we are to live as faithful disciples. We're to love our neighbors as much as we love ourselves.

But while we do these things, I'm here to say that it's also time to stop talking so much about the bad stuff and to start living with a lot more joy.

In Italy there's a wonderful, progressive preschool that bears a motto carved over its entrance: "Nothing without joy." It simply means that whatever you're doing in lifewhatever it isyou can do it with joy.

I know, I know. Some of you are shaking your heads right now, thinking that living with optimism is downright impossible. But remember, we're Easter people, and this is Sunday morning. The Friday when Jesus suffered and died is gone, behind us, its despair and darkness a thing of the past. This is a new day. We serve a risen, resurrected Lord, and because of Jesus, we have a choice, even when bad things happen or we live in tough circumstances, to meet each day with enthusiasm and energy; strength and courage; and wild, crazy, even inexplicable happiness.