Mercy...you need to give to get...

The other day, as I was walking along a quiet road, catching up with my family who was headed to the soccer field, some songs from Les Miserable kept going through my head.  Many of the songs share themes or tunes, and my mind kept dancing back and forth between the words of two of the songs that share a tune--one sung by Javier and one sung by Jean Valjean.

At first, it was just mindless mental meanderings, but then I began to pay attention to the similarities and contrasts of the words:
-each was being confronted with an act of mercy being extended to them: Javier by Jean Valjean, and Jean Valjean by the Bishop.
-Jean Valjean allowed the mercy to change his life; Javier could not accept the mercy and killed himself.

I thought about this, this incredible contrast and then it struck me:  Jean Valjean was able to extend mercy, whereas Javier never had.  Javier was JUSTICE embodied.  And when it came time for him to receive mercy, it was incomprehensible.

And, in the end, one was able to receive mercy, and one was not.

Is that like us?  Is this some manifestation of the scripture "Judge not that ye be not judged" or maybe it could be re-worded to: "Extend mercy so that you may be able to receive it someday"?

Meet Tess, one of the most beautiful spirits I have "met" on our daily "I am Mormon" messages, and she says something that goes right along with it...in her own beautiful way.*  Three minutes.  Totally worth it.

Mercy...you've got to give it to get it, apparently.  I don't think it is some arbitrary "fair" rule that Heavenly Father came up with.  It is a fundamental way of looking at things that comes back to bless us or bite us in the end.  Perhaps the day of judment will not be so terrible because of Heavenly Father being stern, but, because, like Javier, we will not be able to receive His loving mercy.

*Like Sir Ken Robinson said in the quote I put on facebook the other day: "...Human life is inherently creative. It's why we all have different résumés. We create our lives, and we can recreate them as we go through them. It's the common currency of being a human being. It's why human culture is so interesting and diverse and dynamic."  Love people!  Thanks, Tess, for sharing yourself...