Hear my prayer, Lord;
listen to my cry for mercy.
Do you remember the game Mercy? We used to play it in elementary school. Basically, you and one other person face each other, hold both of each other's hands, intertwine fingers, and basically try to cripple the other person before they cripple you. I swear some messed up kids with anger problems created this game, but it was fun.
So the goal of that game was to get your opponent to say, "Mercy!" which would signal your victory. Kids had a variety of techniques; some included:
a) The nails-in-back of knuckles (NBK) - girls would often use this method, and it was generally effective. But if you're going up against someone with a higher pain tolerance, this technique probably wouldn't get the job done.
b) The Pressure Point Pursuit (PPP) - sometimes kids would go for that pressure point kinda between your thumb and index. Apparently, according to this picture, that pressure point also induces headaches... I never knew... but now it makes so much sense.
c) Brute Strength Approach (BSA) - these guys (and sometimes girls) would just beat you by being hecka strong and bending your arms and hands every which way. It wasn't pretty. (Not that I ever lost this way)
(that's what brute strength looked like in first grade)d) The Joint Lock - Probably my weapon of choice, this technique required patience and involved aligning the arm and wrist of the other person just right until BAM you get em in the joint lock. Never fails.
Anyways, when I read this verse, I think of that game. Crying mercy means we give up. We can't take the pain anymore. We acknowledge our weakness and we give up whatever feigned pride and dignity we had at first. Crying mercy means we are overpowered and outdone, first by a ruthless world and second by a relentless God. When we cry for mercy, we surrender everything.
What are you crying out for?
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