Why the Card Didn't Come

Hello again, my friend,

Well, another Mother’s day, down the tubes. (I know you’re glad to see it gone. Sorry to bring it up again.)
And why shouldn’t you be, really? You’ve told me your stories. You’ve mentioned how you used to sit in church, dreading every Mother’s day while all the “good” mothers were being praised. You spoke of how you sat there and simmered, silently thinking, “But you don’t know my mother.” You’ve even mentioned how you might give Hallmark some interesting new suggestions.

I’ve also heard you – through buckets of tears - speak of your painful miscarriage(s) (between 10 and 25% of all pregnancies). You didn’t want to talk about the abortion you had (nearly 43% of all women) - which, you said if you even allowed yourself a moment to think about it, would tear you apart. I’ve heard you whisper, “let’s not even go there.” Sad but true, Mother’s day for you might just be the worst day of the year.

Well, if you’ll allow me, I want to make a new day, in your honor. Let’s call it, “Mercy Day.” But, my friend, be warned. Some churches won’t like it – you won’t really fit in to their happy schedule. As you well know, the greeting card industry won’t have a place for you either. Your family might even give you grief for mentioning the reason. Most of them won’t understand, or even try. But here’s some good news: your real Father (who also sounds a lot like a mother too) will. Listen to how He speaks:

“Can [your] mother forget the baby at her breast, and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.” ~ Isaiah 49:15

Or,

“As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you, and you will be comforted.” Isaiah 66:13

Beautiful stuff, huh? Little did you know, seven hundred years before Jesus came, God was speaking to Isaiah about you. He spoke because He knew that while most mothers would fight like a bear to protect her cubs, some (sadly) would forget. To you, the abandoned cub, He now speaks: there is great compassion and mercy at the hands of Jesus, indelibly etched there for you. He did fight for you, and he won. Call that day the real Mercy day.

And, my friend, though you never had good mothering, my prayer is that we may find you a spiritual mother to love you well (see Titus 2). His church is meant for just such things. But also remember - and here’s the other important part about Mercy day – no one really deserves it. It’s true – neither a mom who remembers, or one who forgets - actually deserves mercy. We’re all rebellious, and so it is extended to both in His cross.

Mercy day then becomes a challenge and an opportunity for you to extend mercy to the most undeserving (you know who I’m thinking of), precisely because God - the One who loves you better than even the best mother will - has shown it to the undeserving (you). Think about it, and we can talk later about what that may look like.

As well, I hope you know that Mercy day also acknowledges the pain of the “empty nest” you now know. It moves with compassion to comfort a mother (and father) who keenly feel that ache and loss, for “He is close to the broken-hearted.” Mercy day becomes an opportunity for us to acknowledge your very real loss as well, to draw close and let you know that we (your true family) remember you, and so does your Father. We can remember because real mercy flows ultimately from the heart of a Father who knows what it feels like to lose his beloved Son.

Well, perhaps you've guessed where I’m going with all this. Can you see that, in reality, every day is Mercy day for us? It’s only by His mercy that we get to stand here on this earth. Only by that mercy that we breathe, that our hearts beat, that we can try to love again. In fact it’s only by mercy that we can exclaim each day: “…His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22,23)

So allow me to be the first to wish you a “Happy Mercy Day.” May you live gratefully in that mercy, and find your true purpose in extending it to others. And who knows? Maybe you’ve got a future in the greeting card business after all.