I have spent some time processing these gifts.
Before I realized I was a Mercy the first time, about 3-ish years ago, I pondered the Prophet, Teacher, and Exhorter relentlessly.
Of all the gifts, I speak to the Teacher the strongest, because of the relentless nature of the specific attacks and accusations against them. And because of my mind for the Scripture, I have landed as Teacher before with a number of people. But then I realized that I carry the office of Teacher, and Scribe, beyond everything else, and so, that actually explains my penchant for writing and the things of Scripture adequately.
Further, every time Arthur or anyone else discussed Mercy, my Mercy portion (which I now recognize sharply) would always speak forth about it to me. You sometimes just know.
I was not able to see this about myself, because of a number of issues, particuarly woundedness, not the least of which is I frequently have an opinion about most things all the time, and I am pretty good at articulating with a great deal of words what my views are on a particular topic.
Most of the time though, my private life, and my interior castle, are things that have occupied a considerable amount of my reality. Just because I can cut like a Prophet, or hold forth like an Exhorter, or process like a Teacher, does not mean I am always like that. My default, contrary to the views of others, is toward gooey intimacy, and without exception, I have always went the way of mothering and pain avoidance.
But under the plethora of words, and open sharing, and scribal editions, and parchments, and ink, and quills, no one would have guessed that.
As a matter of fact, when I first articulated Jesus coming into my office with a scribal desk, quill, parchments, and ink, it was during a deliverance session, and the person ministering to me assumed that was a negative manifestation. Accusations /insinuations of a religious spirit soon followed.
Most don’t understand that one of my intimate places is in my office, with ink on my hands, writing, penning. It was the first place I hated, because in Kindergarten, I was always losing my box of crayons (my first writing/creating utensils) and when Mrs. Hartley had us writing paragraphs, I recall deeply loathing the exercise. It was indeed my first place of suffering. And the first test I clearly recall knowing where I was constantly being resisted in the spirit by clowns.
I love the slightly-bitter aroma of ink, and the feel of my hands sticking as I lift a sweaty palm from a quickly-written piece. I have never lacked for words to say. The pen
The second time I discussed Jesus as a Scribe, joining me at my desk and scribing with me, and what He called me, I was again reproved, during an inner healing session, where I had to fix and correct in the spirit the work of inner healing being done on me. It’s bad enough to have to ask for help from people who are engaged with inner healing. But to have to pinch-hit and ad-lib counter-deliverance from people who think what you are seeing is demonic is just one of the things I have grown used to doing.
But it is okay. I will continue chugging along with or without others who either understand me or do not understand me.
Some Markers for the Mercy
Instead of my usual list of bulletpoints, for the Mercy, I wish to highlight some dynamics that are not really better-articulated through a list, and rather are better for more fluid writing, and in no particular order.
Beingness
So, we talk about the Prophet being identified for the bold, and ideological way they look at things. Always with a sword out, as Megan Caldecourt once told me in Dalton, GA, back when I was discussing being an Exhorter (yes I have been back-and-forth over several gifts, and it is a running joke within the tribe about which gift I am this month.). They have a sword out even when they don’t want to. The sword is usually draped across their lap, or like a pistol at a poker table.
And the Servant bustling about and taking care of the felt needs and apologizing for existing, or because the gravy is too thin, or the mashed potatoes have a lump in them (for your information, if you have no lumps in your mashed potatoes, you need to repent because lumpy potatoes is correct doctrine of mashed potatoes).
And the Teacher’s obsession with primary sources and their preference for the original langauges and the exposition and the references, and their slow butts and their deliberation, and their big frame.
And the Exhorter’s capacity to derive truths and revelation and their social butterfly status. and the capacity to hold forth and deal with large and diverse groups and get them moving in a particular direction.
And the Giver who just looks for a deal, and sniffs out hidden agendas, and always wants to renegotiate, and has a plethora of divers interests.
And the Ruler/Judge/Deliverer who sets up systems to take over some aspect of the world.
Mercy Gravitations
So, where does that leave the Mercy?
I am glad you asked.
Bryan Trapp, my close Exhorter friend, would tell you about their discussing things in ethereal otherworldly terms.
Mercies are designed to understand beingness. Ethereal. Rest. Satisfied fulfillment. Fullness. Their expression of the character of G-d is in His, pardon the iinvention of the word, isness.
You heard me. Is. Ness. Isness.
In the beginning, G-d did not merely exist. He was. He is’ed.
And we with all of our Ruler-season apologetics and defense of the faith and exposure of heretics, and, and, and this movie that proves his existence, or this book that talks about the manuscripts. That does not prove the existence of G-d, and we do not need to somehow prove that G-d exists or defend Him. Seriously.
As if G-d was like a bump on a log without effective actual kinetic movingness and flow. And as if He needed us poor, witless souls to defend Him.
God does not exist. And those passages that use that term in Scripture are inadequate.
Rather, G-d is the root of all that is. And G-d is the foundation and ground of all being. And, again, if I told you that the remark “G-d is the ground of all being” came from Neo-Orthodox theologian Paul Tillich
G-d IS.
G-d BE.
I AM.
He is ever moving, ever-revealing, and every is-ing.
G-d is not a rock that sits around and does nothing, but THE Rock in a weary land.
Neither are rocks mere inanimate objects. According to Jesus, they have the capacity to speak. It is not a freaking metaphor to say “the rocks would cry out”.
So what was G-d doing while creation was humming along on the seventh day?
He was BEING. He was G-dding along.
He was emantating effulgent, active, effective, holifying, radiance.
Now Bryan Trapp sees my Mercy-ness with my esoteric language bursting forth.
His essence and light were humming forth.
Digression
And now that I have used that word “humming”, I understand that some are going to make the link between sound and light.
There is a connection, but the connection is not as much of a two-way street, or one-to-one ratio as one might think.
Sound is a vibrational wave.
Light is both a wave and a particle.
Sound does not have mass. Light does.
Sound is a disturbance. Light impacts more deeply.
Back to Mercying along though.
More Ether and Greater Fulfillment
Mercies are frequently the most aware of the concepts of being and existing. And they are capable of feeling all the weird feely things all at once. They are usually the ones who peer with ease, deeply into people.
And nature.
And animals.
And creation.
And they love a deep problem. And the subjects they love they love to research deeply, and they love to curate the best books and materials on that subjects.
This is why I have 85 billion commentaries on Scripture.
This is also why I do not have a Nintendo Switch Lite. I have a Switch.
Many times, a Mercy can be pointed out by their tastes in that which is a cut above.
Sometimes, a Mercy can be pointed out because they are often the odd one out that everyone else is making fun of their points of view.
Sometimes they seem as if they are on another planet.
And the frequent obsession with purple. Purple is correct doctrine.
And many a male Mercy has been cast from his dad’s side because he was perceived as effeminate, and if I let that weird son of mine into my garage, he won’t understand, and he will break something because he doesn’t know how to fix things like my other more analytical son over here.
Often, Mercies are not the jacks of all trades.
Though some can surprise you.
And then there is Albert Einsten, and King David.
And the maker of empanadas and street food extrordinaire, John Walquist.
With his gift for fragrance, and his capacity to cultivate ambiance.
Many a Mercy’s love and need for physical touch and intimacy is mistaken for homosexuality. And so the accusations get hurled. And they often either have too many relationships that turn into trainwrecks, or they go to the opposite extreme to prove they can be like every other believer and not need physical touch.
And so an unmet need gets stuffed, lest they get mistreated or misunderstood by others.
And all they want frequently is one loyal friend that will not hold them in judgment as weird as they and their ideas might seem, who can jive with them, and with whom they can build somethng unusual.
Loyal Friends Who Are Registered Democrats And Republicans
After your heads stop exploding, conservative evangelicals, read the following.
One can be a Christian and a Democrat. Or a Jew and a Democrat.
I have a friend who is a Mercy and they are also a follower of Christ, and they happen to be a registered Democrat.
God-For-Freaking-Bid.
Here is the thing. If you are able to handle being friends with someone and suspend judgment based on their denominational or political affiliation, there is no telling what treasures G-d will bring you.
My Giver grandmother, once wanted to host the Democrat Governor of Florida, Bob Martinez, at our local Chamber of Commerce in Starke, and the Republicans who got wind of this got up in arms. And she responded saying, she did not care what their political affiliation was, she was going to connect and work with whomever the governor was. And she got to host him.
Gang, sometimes the best thing, and the most G-d-Oorchestrated thing you can do is withhold judgment. You never know what the L-d will do in your midst and whom He will connect you with, if you just walk with Him.
And Mercies are capable of restraining judgment quite skillfully. And they are judged frequently because of the mentality that it is better to live in a bawdy, gonads-out manner, with not a lick of shrewdness.
What was the line from that movie?
“I would rather stand with G-d and be judged by the world than stand with the world and be judged by G-d.”
The problem with that quote is not the quote itself. Rather it’s this idiotic perception that a dichotomy must always be present.
Well, of course you would rather stand with G-d and be judged by the world.
What you might be missing is there are a crapload of ways to spread the gospel than just with an apologetic-driven and a tract-driven form of ministry.
Some methods of sharing the gospel are so 1920’s that they need to be ditched because they simply do not work anymore. The reason certain movies do not appeal to or convert present-day postmodern, Mercy-season people is because the capacity to coherently speak propositional truth is not the prevailing factor in bringing someone into the kingdom.
Showing an atheist the movie G-d’s Not Dead and G-d’s Not Dead 2 will not convince them.
Rather, not being a serial rapist, adulterer, or child pimp is what is going to win them. In other words, it is about consistency and integrity and grit.
It is about relationship and intimacy, not whether or not they see you as a credible authority or whether or not you have dotted ever I or crossed every T in our presentation of the Romans Road.
In other words, did I bother to give a shit about actually wanting a relationship with that person and connecting with them, and putting up with their mouths and behavior, or am I just in it to put a notch in my belt.
One With the Spirit and Six With The Soul. That Is Not How It Works. That Is Not How Any of This Works.
One other dynamic is that Mercies are often known for leading with their emotions, where the other six gifts frequently lead with their minds.
I know I am likely going to catch grief because I didn’t use the same language here that Arthur used about a Mercy receving something first in their spirits.
There is a large reason for that.
In Nurturing Your Spirit: Basic Seminar, Level 1, Arthur made the comment that “G-d does not deal with us on the level of our souls, but rather on the level of our spirits”.
This is different to what he said in his video on the Mercy that says the Mercy connects with G-d on the spirit level while the other six connect with G-d with their minds.
So, why the disparity? I think I understand why.
When I have watched G-d work with each of the gifts, I have seen Him or felt Him attempt to connect with each first on the level of their spirits. And with a Mercy, the first evidence this has happened is a touch in the emotions. With the other six, there is another point of registering that they have gotten the memo.
Again, this is my take, as is this entire post. And y’all are welcome to take or leave as much as you want.
I am just reporting I have seen, and I think there is a better way to articulate this interaction and differentiation between the Mercy and the other six gifts in how they interact with G-d.
Data Vs. Gut
One other dynamic of the Mercy that differentiates them from the other gifts, is that while the other six like to present data for proving G-d is over here, the Mercy doesn’t do that, but insteads has a gut reaction and knowledge that G-d is somewhere and often cannot expian why or provide a litany of hard data proving G-d is in a certain thing or place.
And this often extends to a lot of their interactions with others. If they have a friend who is getting ready to do something, and there is a danger that no one can predict or see, the Mercy will often get a…something somwhere….and they tell their friend that it might not be wise for them to proceed along that course of their plan.
Mercies can often feel the what without knowing why.
Another indicator you are dealing with a Mercy or that you are a Mercy, has very little to do with how much Mercy you show.
Good, now that I have that out of the way….ahem…
Magnets For Wounded Peeps + Feelings
Mercies also are magnets for every wounded or rejected person in an area. If you have ever been in a situation where someone who is a stranger comes up and dumps their complete lifestory onto your lap, you might be a Mercy.
And Mercies often double as empaths. Or burden bearers. Pick your term. Some might get up in arms because “empath” is too New Agey, and “burden bearer” is a more Christian term, to which I have to shrug my shoulders and let them figure it out.
That is, they feel when people share things.
They feel all the feely feels.
And for those who are irritated with the feeling language and how we have a generation of men who are effeminate. No, we have had feminine men who are in touch with their emotions in every generation, including President Lincoln, and instead of calling us gay or castrated, you need to learn how to accept our love, affection, and embrace, and feeling through a problem, and maybe recognize that some of us are not going to look the way you think a typical man should.
Handling “Incompetence”
By the way, if you are dealing with a Mercy, though they might seem incompetent to help you in your workshop, if you give them instruction on what to do and you are willing to coach and teach a LOT, you might have a reliable worker who because they connected deeply with you, might also be willing to do the DEEP research necessary to help your projects arrive and a place of excellence.
And I know many who will say Prophet and Exhorter are the only visionary and verbal expressives of the bunch, and Mercies are generally soft-spoken, but if you get a Mercy going on a topic they love, or you cross something about which they are zealous, they can get really lippy and mouthy (think King David with Goliath). I know many a Mercy who by their talk can peel the stubborn paint off of a wall, or command a stop sign to say GO. Give them a track and they may outvision and outtalk even a Prophet or Exhorter. Doubly so if they are given to socialization or slightly extroverted.
Granted, that is not the usual way with a Mercy, but I have seen it happen.
On the topic of Churches in Revelation here is your fractal of the names of G-d from Revelation, each with its Fractal of Two
Prophet: G-d of the Seven Stars/G-d Who Walks Among the Seven Lampstands
Servant: The G-d Who Came to Life/ G-d The First and Last
Teacher: G-d of the Sharp Two-Edged Sword
Exhorter: The Son of G-d/G-d with Burnished Feet and Fiery Eyes
Giver: G-d Who Has the Seven Spirits/ G-d who Has the Seven Stars
RJD: G-d the Holy And True/G-d Who Has the Key of David
Mercy: G-d the Amen, the Faithful Witness, and the True Witness/The Beginning of G-d’s Creation
Can G-d Use Me?
The dynamic of this Mercy Season is not whether you are hot or cold, as if cold was a bad thing. The question is “can you be both hot and cold by turns, as needed?” The question is whether or not G-d can used you as the situation demands.
Laodecia was not rebuked for being for or against. Cold was just as good and useful as hot, depeding on the context. The only thing G-d hated was lukewarmth. Sloth. Entropy. Devolving to only ever hunting for the path of least resistance.
So, gang, I bless each of you in this sequence to consider your gift, as you read through the sequence. May your day be blessed and filled with all His fullness and may you walk in extravagent fulfillment.
