Currents of Mercy
Wednesday (November 26)
Currents of Mercy
Psalm 84:5-6
Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion. As they go through the Valley of Baca they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools.
I love the avenues of interpretation this poetic line inspires. Effectively, God’s heart is full of paths of all kinds: from crowded highways to lonely byways; from main streets through city-centers to gravel, country roads; from twisting turnpikes to overgrown cart-paths. His heart finds a way to all corners of the earth, to people of every tribe, tongues, and nations, leaving no one out. I suggest we read Psalm 84 not merely as a description but as an invitation. Because no matter the circumstances of life, no matter the surrounding chaos and confusion, no matter the world full of trials that you awakened to this morning, right now, God is turning a barren Valley of Baca into an oasis of eternal springs.
Couple this Scripture with the beautiful description given by the Prophet Zechariah in Zechariah 9:9 that serves as both a historical prophecy for Christ’s first coming as well as a picture of the way in which Christ continually condescends to meet us: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey.” If the sight of Christ’s humility doesn’t get you reaching for the nearest palm-branch and shouting “Hosanna!” at the top of your lungs, I don’t know what will. There’s no spring like this well of compassion! There’s no rain like this showering of pity! Oh friend, immerse yourself afresh today in the King’s benevolence. Take comfort in the knowledge that Christ knew the agony awaiting Him on the other side of that path, and He knew that the hallelujahs would be short-lived, but He kept going anyway—through that dark, lonely, painful valley of death, all the way from Gethsemane to Golgotha, giving every last drop of His mortal vitality to blaze a trail for you and me.
Oh, the highways to Zion are arteries—fountains of crimson hues—flowing from God’s heart through the wounds of His Passion, and strengthening the hearts of all those who immerse themselves in the currents and follow them further up and further in.