Great is Thy Faithfulness, LORD unto me!

"Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning. Great is thy faithfulness." Lamentations 3:122-23

God is faithful. He’s full of compassion. His mercies are new every morning. As a believer, you know that. But simply knowing it is not enough. For it to do you any good, you have to internalize and personalize it. You have to remember it again and again if you want to renew your hope and stir up the flames of your faith.

Jeremiah had been writing about how difficult and depressing his circumstances were in captivity. But then suddenly, in the middle of this bleak account, his thoughts take a startling positive turn toward the character of God. The Hebrew word translated here mercies is used 250 times in the Old Testament. It is a term that includes many of God's qualities, like His love, His goodness, His forgiveness, His compassion, and His faithfulness. Even in the midst of God’s discipline, there was hope. Judah would not be permanently destroyed but ultimately restored.

Throughout the history of mankind in Scripture, God’s unmistakable pattern is seen over and over again: disobedience brings consequences, but confession always brings forgiveness and renewal. When Jeremiah meditated on this, he remembered that God had many mercies available all over again, every single day. This section ends with a powerful statement: “Great is Thy faithfulness.”

This line about God’s faithfulness makes me stop and think of the people I know, who always do exactly what they say they will do without excuse, no matter what the circumstances and how they personally are doing. The more I think about it, the more I realize how few people I know like that. We live in a world filled with broken promises and disappointment, a world filled with people who are unfaithful, including ourselves. So, what do we do?

Jeremiah was struggling with discouragement, but he chose to focus on this particular characteristic of the Heavenly Father—Faithfulness. When we become discouraged, we should do what Jeremiah did - stop and remember God’s faithfulness. We need to memorize this verse and get into the habit of quoting it to ourselves when we are discouraged. We need to remember how God has answered our prayers. How He has provided for us, given us courage when we were afraid, loved us when everyone else disappointed us, and been faithful to us when no one else was. When storms are overwhelming us, we need to get alone and reflect on this amazing truth: God is faithful! Our Heavenly Father is faithful and full of mercy, not giving us what we deserve when we humbly come to Him.

So, make it a point to remind yourself of God’s faithfulness every morning. Stand before Him in prayer and recite His mercies to you. Remember God’s blessings every day.

“LORD, we join in with Your children and all of Heaven and sing of Your great faithfulness to us, reminding ourselves of Your fresh, new mercies that are extended to us again this morning. Make this day a day of praise to You! We love You and worship You! In Jesus' name! Amen!”

Under His Mercies!

Pastor Ken

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Here Is The Story Behind Great Is Thy Faithfulness--

Thomas O. Chisholm wrote the lyrics of this hymn in 1923 about God's faithfulness over his lifetime. Chisholm sent the song to William Runyan in Kansas, who was affiliated with both the Moody Bible Institute and Hope Publishing Company. Runyan set the poem to music, and it was published that same year by Hope Publishing Company and became popular among church congregations. Chisholm's lyrics reference the Bible verses of Lamentations 3:22-23. The hymn gained a wide audience after becoming successful with Dr. William Henry Houghton of the Moody Bible Institute and Billy Graham, who used the song frequently on his international crusades. Since the mid-20th century, this song has been the university hymn of Cairn University which was previously Philadelphia Biblical University after being Philadelphia College of Bible, established in 1913.

I hope to see you in church real soon!

Pastor Ken