Great Is God's Faithfulness

Lamentations 3:21-24 – But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him." (NRSV)

Recently, the day that I had been dreading for three months arrived: the day when my mentor and friend, the Area Minister under whom I have been working for the past fourteen years, moved out-of-state to take another job.

I owe this person so very much, for I have been the beneficiary of his wisdom. The fact that he was there to help me through some tough moments, and did, produced a wonderful feeling of security. The fear that I'm not wise enough or don't know enough had been getting to me the closer the day of his departure approached. Do I know enough? Can I manage on my own? Who are other good resource people to whom I can turn? These and many other thoughts have recently chased each other through my head.

All of a sudden, as a bolt, it came to mind that I am not "on my own". I don't have to worry about managing by myself. None of us is ever all alone — for God is here, right with us, walking our walk with us and knowing our needs before we do. God is here every day, in even the little things. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases and his mercies never come to an end. Great is God's faithfulness! What a gift of hope this realization was for me. I felt as if a bright light shone in my life again.

On the very morning of the day I'd been fearing, I woke with the words of the wonderful hymn Great is Thy faithfulness literally coming out of my mouth as I opened my eyes. I could not believe it, yet it happened. God has wonders to perform, and does so each day, and was reminding me that I have nothing to fear.

Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee:
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not,
As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.

Refrain:
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided,
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Prayer: Our God of steadfast love, we turn to you in our moments of dis-ease, fear, uncertainty, and in times of passage when the new, the unknown, threatens us with its uncertainty. Guide us with your great faithfulness so that all we need to move on will be ours. Gather us in and wrap us up in your everlasting care, so that as we make tentative steps into unknown territory, we will know your presence with us and have nothing to fear. Amen.

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