Day 32: Refrain from Unfaithfulness, Embrace Faithfulness

Good Morning My Friends! Great is Thy Faithfulness!

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!

This morning I’m intensely grateful for God’s faithfulness to me. This gratitude comes from deep within me and sometimes it flows out in unstoppable tears. So it is this morning.

As I read Scriptures about “faithfulness” earlier this morning, I was reminded how true these words are for me.

God’s love and faithfulness have never stopped.

“For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord.” (Psalm 117:2, NIV).

I will praise His name today!

True Story Ahead

I used to be embarrassed to let others not only see my tears, but also know about them. I felt vulnerable because tears express what’s truly going on inside a person. I didn’t always want others to know what was truly going on inside of me. Honestly, sometimes I still don’t.

Today, I want you all to know. I’ve been shedding tears all morning while writing this blog post because I’m so grateful that the God of all creation sees me, Michelle, the little girl who grew up in a tiny town and moved to a big city to live her ordinary life. She married, raised three children, worked, cooked, cleaned, and paid bills. She celebrated birthdays, holidays, weddings, and every small and big thing in between. Attended funerals. Visited the sick in hospitals. Cleaned up vomit, dog poop, and dirt. She has shoveled snow and dirty laundry. She has suffered loss (miss you Dad and sister Becky), marital separation, and illness. She has had amazing friendships in every stage of her life. She has studied a lot and earned degrees. She has gained weight and lost weight. She has exercised and not exercised. She has been both naughty and nice!

And yes, she cries today because God has been so faithful to her throughout her ordinary life.

These tears express overwhelming gratefulness to a loyal and faithful God.

Great is Thy Faithfulness

The words at the beginning of this blog post are from the song, “Great is Thy Faithfulness,” which was written by Thomas Crisholm. He penned the words as a poem first and then a friend of his put the melody to it years later.

So many times great songs come from life-changing events in a person’s life, but Crisholm’s lyrics came from living an ordinary life.

I love that because I can relate to it so well.

For over 50 years now God has been faithful to me. I’ve noticed!

God is faithful always. He can’t not be faithful because it’s who He is.

He has an unwavering adherence to His promises and His person. He cannot change. He is God.

If we are going to live intentionally for God and with God, we, too, need to be faithful. We need to choose to have unwavering adherence to our promises and to who we are in Christ.

Like so many other things we are embracing, faithfulness is a fruit of the Spirit.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23, NIV).

Others will know if we are trustworthy by the fruit of faithfulness.

Refrain from Unfaithfulness

We need to be faithful to God. We need to be faithful to others. I cannot express this enough. Our unfaithfulness only leads to trouble.

“The way of the unfaithful leads to their destruction” (Proverbs 13:15, NIV).

Think of the marriages and families that have been destroyed because either the husband or wife have been unfaithful.

The Lord says:

“’The man who hates and divorces his wife does violence to the one he should protect,’ So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful.” (Malachi 2:16, NIV).

I know this breaks God’s heart because it breaks mine. I understand why many people divorce, but it’s not God’s plan for us.

Think of other relationships that are destroyed because people choose to not have unswerving adherence to their commitments and promises.

No wonder so many people don’t trust others. The only way we can trust someone, including God, is if that person is faithful, meaning having a steady, unwavering, and firm resistance to any temptation to desert or betray another.

God instructs us to not let faithfulness leave us:

“Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart” (Proverbs 3:3, NIV).

We have a choice!

Practical Application

Faithfulness should be evident in our lives if this fruit is growing in us.

How do we embrace faithfulness?

We need to obey God’s Word. He’s been providing a lot of commandments over the last month.

Your promises, commitments, and your word need to mean something. Keep your promises!

If you’re married, you made promises to your spouse. If you promised to love and honor, are you? Remember we are to embrace love and honor.

Are you employed? Be faithful to your employer. Are you doing what you said you would do when you were hired? Think back to what you said. Are you using your time appropriately?

We need to keep God’s Ten Commandments:

• Do not have any other god before God.
• Do not make yourself an idol.
• Do not take the Lord’s name in vain.
• Remember the Sabbath Day and keep it holy.
• Honor thy Mother and Father.
• Do not murder.
• Do not commit adultery.
• Do not steal.

Okay, so I know that seems like a lot, but we do it one day at a time. Are we willing just today to refrain from unfaithfulness and embrace faithfulness?

I’m so grateful of the Lord’s faithfulness to me. Throughout my entire life, He has helped me. He’s healed, restored, established and forgiven me. This girl is willing to be faithful because

“The Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations” (Psalm 100:5, NIV).

Yes, today I am grateful for a faithful God!

Blessing for the Day

[callout]May you declare your faithful love in the morning and your faithfulness at night. (Psalm 92:2, HCSB)[/callout]

Just for Today

Refrain from Unfaithfulness. Embrace Faithfulness!