“Mephibosheth bowed down and said, ‘What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?’”
2 Samuel 9:8
When David shows mercy to Saul’s crippled grandson, Mephibosheth, the young man replies with humility: “What is your servant, that you should show regard?” He has good reason for this humility— his grandfather Saul was the man who made David’s life miserable for years. Mephibosheth probably expected death at that point as much as mercy!
Our past often sets the stage for how we view the future. “Once an enemy, always an enemy,” Mephibosheth could have told himself. The dark cynicism that accompanies depression is often rooted in the past. A broken home in particular helps shape a broken view of the world. Perhaps you fear vulnerability because someone hurt you as a child, or perhaps you distrust love because you’ve seen it broken over and over.
Whatever the case, you must recognize that your cynicism is carried by the darkness of this world and not by the light of the gospel. Just as David surprised his vulnerable enemy with grace and love, so Jesus came to redeem us, heal our wounds, and lighten our hearts with hope.
Our past often sets the stage for how we view the future. “Once an enemy, always an enemy,” Mephibosheth could have told himself. The dark cynicism that accompanies depression is often rooted in the past. A broken home in particular helps shape a broken view of the world. Perhaps you fear vulnerability because someone hurt you as a child, or perhaps you distrust love because you’ve seen it broken over and over.
Whatever the case, you must recognize that your cynicism is carried by the darkness of this world and not by the light of the gospel. Just as David surprised his vulnerable enemy with grace and love, so Jesus came to redeem us, heal our wounds, and lighten our hearts with hope.
Scripture Focus
2 Samuel 9
Insight
Trace the lines of your cynicism back to their poisonous sources and offer those wounds to the Lord.
Bible In A Year
- Nehemiah 12-13
- Psalm 37
- Mark 16
