The Fruit of the Spirit (Faithfulness)

“Because of the Lords’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22,23 N IV).

Mount Rainier, 1971

His compassions NEVER fail! No matter what we did yesterday, God still loves us today. His salvation is always available to us. He is faithful to love us every day. Hebrews 13:8 tells us, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (NIV). His love for us does not depend upon our love for Him, and His love for us does not depend on how much we strive to please Him. He loves each of us the same no matter how we behave. We can’t earn His love. We can’t lose His love. God IS faithful. 

 Was He faithful to love me on the day I was born? YES!, Was He faithful to love me on the day I accepted Jesus as Savior? YES! Was He faithful to love me the day I was baptized? YES! Was He faithful to love me the day that I questioned His faithfulness? YES! Was He faithful to love me the day I had choice words for the person who cut me off in traffic? YES! Was He faithful to love me on the day that I questioned His love for me? YES! Was He faithful to love me on the day that I ___________________________________________. You can fill in the blank with any day, any time, good or bad, and the answer is always YES! YES! YES! God is the embodiment of faithfulness.  As surely as we know that the Sun will rise tomorrow; as surely as we know that Mt. Rainier will still be there tomorrow; as surely as we know that the stars will fill the sky tonight, we can be more sure that God is faithful to love us. There is no time that God does not love us, as unlovable as we may be. 

 I think I have made the point that God is faithful, but what about us? Are we faithful? Well, yes, to a point, we are faithful. You see, we were made in the image of God, so faithfulness is in us. God expects us to be faithful. Sometimes we disappoint Him, but He still expects us to be faithful. We are required to be faithful. Paul tells us that in I Corinthians 4:2: “Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful” (NIV). Each of us has been given a gift, a trust, that we are to use to forward the Kingdom of God. We are human and we fail at times. God understands that, and when we fail, because of His faithfulness, He still expects that we will be faithful tomorrow. It is my desire that I disappoint my Lord less as I grow in the knowledge of Him, and He believes that I will. If God expects me to do better in serving Him, then I can believe it too. The joy of the Lord is my strength, and knowing that I give Him joy when I am obedient to His commands, I can grow in obedience. 

   Thank you, Lord, for your unbounded faithfulness. It gives me joy and peace and comfort and confidence.