your mercies are new today

​I was driving the other day when I heard the song 'New Today' by Micah Tyler. I'd heard it before, but this day I heard it in a deeply personal way.

I heard it in a way that sounded like it was personal to the singer. I heard it in a way that made it feel personal to me.

When I got home, I researched the back story to the song.

Several years ago, Micah Tyler's grandmother was battling blood cancer. He describes that as a challenging time. Then, in the middle of it, he lost his house to Hurricane Harvey. And just when the recovery from that loss seemed possible - maybe life was finally turning in his favor - his younger brother was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer.

After reading that back story, the song became even more powerful to me.

In the chorus of the song, when you hear Tyler passionately crying out the words to that chorus, you hear a man singing about a beautiful discovery:

Your mercies are new today
Your mercies are new today
I can rest on Your shoulders
There is grace to start over
Your mercies are new today

That back story has me listening to this song a lot lately. Because the truth is, I'm battling my own struggles. I think we all are.

We've had this pandemic upend our lives for over a year. In the middle of it, I'm going through a marriage breakup. Both of my jobs look totally different in a virtual world - a difference that often makes them less fulfilling; more challenging. On top of that - running - which has always helped me feel connected to people, has become a sport that is largely disconnected from people in this virtual world.

I say all that for a couple of reasons. To say I get you Micah Tyler. And to say my guess is you get Micah Tyler too.

Our struggles aren't about comparison - a struggle is a struggle. If you have one it's real. It doesn't matter if on paper it appears to be more than or less than someone else's struggle.

A struggle is a struggle.

When I think of the biggest challenge of my struggles - for me - the opening words in Tyler's song speak to me:

I've been hard on myself lately
Every morning I feel the weight
When it's hard to just get out of bed
Tell my heart, 'cause sometimes I forget
That Your mercies are new today

"Every morning I feel the weight".......

In the bible, in the book of Lamentations, God reminds us:

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

In this song, Micah Tyler is really singing out loud to God, asking him: remind me of your faithfulness God. Remind me that every day is a new day. Remind me that I don't need to be strong enough to face this day - you ARE my strength.

I simply need me to rise. I simply need to get out of this bed and tackle this day.

The beautiful part about this song? Micah Tyler is on the other side of those struggles singing about the lessons learned. He isn't singing a song hoping there is truth in God's promise of new mercies every day.

He's singing from a place of having experienced that truth.

When I find myself singing along with this song these days - that's the place I'm singing it from as well. Every day I sing it is a day God has showed up with new mercies.

Every day I sing it - in spite of the weight, I'm up writing and tackling the morning in the midst of new and beautiful and life-giving mercies.

I'm grateful for that. I'm grateful for the chance to remind you too, that no matter how heavy that weight, it IS a new day and there ARE new mercies.

There IS grace to start over - each and every day. There is hope in that, and I'm here to tell you, there is truth in that.