my forehead to His feet.

My Dad called me, and asked me to suggest a verse for a friend to whom he wanted to give comfort. "Ashley, which verse do you find comforting?"

Well, Dad. For my money, Romans 9:15.

There's flipping on the other end of the phone line. Then silence. Then incredulity.

"'I will have mercy on whom I'll have mercy, and compassion on whom I'll have compassion?' That's the verse you find comforting? That's what you want me to tell my friend with a sick daughter?"

Yes, and here's why.

What else are you going to say? Unless God Himself tells you so, it's probably a wash to tell anyone that that they're going to be healed. "Atleast she'll be in a better place"? Ouch. Like nails on a coffin. A simple "I love you so much, what do you need?" is a good place to start. But, you know, spiritual people want to say spiritual stuff.

So. Romans 9:15.

It's got everything you need. That is, it's got God being God. God being in charge. God enacting the plan of God.

Maybe it lacks varnish. It's not comforting like soft pillows, and haagen-daaz, and Guideposts magazines. But it's got truth, which can sometimes resemble the edge of a straight blade. Straight blades aren't comforting.

I think there's something to be said for Truth, though. Luckily, there are enough other comforting verses to fill in the blanks on this one. On whom will He have compassion? Everyone. Who will touch His mercy? We all do.

That last stuff seems like junk. There's this huge gulf of mystery between our understanding of salvation, and God. Some people don't ever reach for His compassion, and others won't ever feel His mercy. So, is He compassionate? How could He be merciful?

There's a real question there. An absence of knowledge. No logic can reach into that hole, friends.

But that's the beauty of the verse, see. Whether or not we understand the workings of God, He works. Though I might not ever make sense of the world around me, God's power is absolute. I ask, in frustration, why doesn't he believe? Why won't she just say yes? And my despair for the darkness is almost too much.

So I say: His will be done. But I worry about the contents of His will. Then, I reach for a comforting thought of God--something to soften that will. "He loves me too much for that to happen."

But really, the great thing about the verse is that it doesn't seem to reach out to comfort us, but to offer us reality.

He will have have mercy on whom He has mercy, and compassion on whom He has compassion.

Whatever happens, God chose it. Or He allowed it. Or He created it. And whether I love Him or hate Him through it all, He's the same. He's in control. Whether I shout at Him all night, or put my forehead to His feet, His is the power.

Now that's comforting.