Mercy & Truth - Discovering God's Perfect Blend for Balance

I have heard it said that balance is nothing more than a perpetual effort of correcting imbalances. Whether it is in work or play, spending or giving, service or rest, giving or taking, God can give us balance. Sadly, attempting balance has become somewhat of a clich among Christians today. But wise Solomon told us that God delights in our maintaining a just balance. One often overlooked balance is in our interpersonal treatment of the people who regularly disappoint us. One of the strongest people persons of the Bible was Solomon. He cries out with a compelling plea in Proverbs 3:3 - Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart. We are to respond to the mistakes of others with a perfected balance of mercy and truth! Unfortunately, most of us have a penchant for one over the other. Some love mercy (not giving someone what they deserve); others demand for truth (boldly proclaiming things strongly held to be right). In Mercy and Truth: Discovering God's Perfect Blend for Balance, Dr. Paul Kingsbury teaches this truth: absent of utilizing God's loving mercy, we will become hardened and un-compassionate toward the fallen. Likewise, without truth, we will be ineffective in transitioning people from positions of instability to standing firm. Favoring one over the other is a false balance. But embracing this balance of mercy plus truth, we will be empowered to look over transgressions while simultaneously expressing what is strongly held to be right to the transgressor. Doing so out of a heart of love, we will see our perpetrators purged of their iniquity and we will be granted favor with God and man (Proverbs 16:6 and 3:3).