08/01/2026
Because I have received mercy and grace again and again, I will praise the Lord more and more.
There was a time when I thought praise was something reserved for moments when life felt easy—when prayers were answered quickly, when joy was obvious, when everything seemed to be going right. But as the years have passed, I’ve learned something deeper and far more humbling: my praise is not rooted in perfection or ease. It is rooted in mercy. It is sustained by grace. And both have met me more times than I can count.
I have received mercy when I deserved consequences.
I have received grace when I fell short of my own expectations.
I have been forgiven, carried, corrected, and restored more times than I can number.
And because of that, praise no longer feels optional—it feels inevitable.
Mercy met me in my weakest moments. When I knew better but still failed. When I made choices driven by fear, impatience, or pride. When I walked into seasons I wouldn’t choose again. God did not turn away from me then. He didn’t label me by my mistakes or abandon me to my regret. Instead, He met me with compassion. He withheld what I deserved and offered kindness instead. That mercy didn’t excuse my failures—but it gave me room to grow beyond them.
Grace followed closely behind.
Grace didn’t just forgive me—it changed me. It taught me that I don’t have to earn God’s love by getting everything right. It reminded me that my worth isn’t measured by performance, productivity, or perfection. Grace met me when I was tired of trying to prove myself. It met me when my faith felt thin. It met me when my prayers were incomplete and my strength was gone.
Again and again, grace filled the gaps I couldn’t close on my own.
I have received mercy in protection I didn’t see at the time.
Grace in delays that frustrated me but later saved me.
Mercy in closed doors I once begged God to open.
Grace in endurance when answers didn’t come quickly.
Looking back, I can see how often God’s kindness was working quietly behind the scenes. How many times I was spared from harm, redirected from paths that would have cost me deeply, or held together when I felt like I was falling apart. None of that was luck. None of it was coincidence. It was mercy and grace—steady, intentional, and undeserved.
And because I’ve received so much, praise feels like the only honest response.
Praise is no longer something I offer only when life is good. It’s something I give because God is good—consistently, patiently, faithfully. I praise Him not because I never struggle, but because I am never abandoned in the struggle. I praise Him not because I am perfect, but because He is gracious. I praise Him because His mercy keeps meeting me where I am, not where I think I should be.
Each time God forgives me, my praise grows deeper.
Each time He restores me, my praise grows louder.
Each time He stays when I stumble, my praise grows steadier.
Praise has become less about emotion and more about remembrance. I remember where I could have been without His mercy. I remember who I was becoming before His grace intervened. I remember how many times I was carried when I thought I was walking on my own.
Because I have received mercy and grace again and again, I praise the Lord with humility.
Not as someone who has arrived, but as someone who has been rescued. Not as someone who never falls, but as someone who has always been lifted. My praise is shaped by gratitude, not entitlement. It is offered freely because grace was given freely.
And I know this: I will need mercy again. I will need grace again. I will stumble, question, and grow tired again. But I also know God will meet me again—with the same faithfulness, the same patience, the same love. And when He does, my praise will only continue to grow.
So I praise Him in the morning, remembering new mercies.
I praise Him at night, grateful for sustaining grace.
I praise Him in quiet moments and in overwhelming ones.
Because my life has been marked—not by my own goodness—but by His.
And because I have received mercy and grace again and again, I will praise the Lord more and more—not out of obligation, but out of a heart that knows just how much it has been given.
