God’s mercy and not our goodness

“We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.” Daniel 9.18

In this moving prayer, Daniel touches on a lovely truth about God: we approach him because of who he is and not because of what we have done.  Suppose you are seeking God for healing – and have been doing so for a while.  It is tempting to assume that for the mercy of God to flow unimpeded, there must be more that you can do; more bible reading, longer times of prayer, more repentance and a fresh resolve to lead a godly life.

However, to think like this undermines one of the greatest truths about our faith – that we are saved, helped and healed by grace and not by our works.  Of course, no Christian deliberately plans to live an ungodly lifestyle, but the basis of turning to God is that he is a God of such great mercy.

It is a prayer of courage and honesty to come before him and say: “Father, I come to you today, not because of anything I have done but simply because you are a God of mercy.”

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