What Is True About God

Lam. 3:22-23

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

 

Chapter 3 begins with the writer declaring he is a man who has seen affliction under God's rod of wrath. His days have turned to darkness, and his flesh and skin have wasted away. As he examines his life, he sees only bitterness and tribulation. And worse yet, he feels his prayers are shut out. Where is his hope? When his endurance has perished and so has his hope from the Lord, what does he do? For all mankind, there are times when circumstances are constantly defeating, when illness and starvation consume the flesh, and when a man is scorned and becomes the laughingstock of all people. The writer's plight is something we all can understand and sympathize with. But where do we turn when everything in life is bearing down?

 

The writer himself knows the answer to the question when he says, But this I call to mind, and there fore I have hope. He rises above his circumstances and focuses on something other than himself and his problems. He calls to mind and remembers what is true about God. The mind and spirit trump the debilitating physical elements of his life and the defeating and constantly negative emotions. He rises out of the pit of self-pity and focuses his life on God!

 

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. The Lord is good to those who wait for Him to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.

 

The writer has come back to God accepting what God has allowed in his life and quietly waits for the Lord to save him. He knows that God's love and mercy are unending, that God is his portion, and that God is good to those who wait for Him. He is assured that in God's timing all his issues will be resolved and that they are for his good. He is submitting to God and seeing his life as an instrument to be used by God for His higher purposes. What a great lesson! I must always call to mind and remember what is true about God! I must not live only for the circumstances of this life, but live for God accepting His will and waiting patiently for Him.

 

Father,

Thank You for Your ending love and mercies. Increase my patience as I wait for You. Help me never forget what is true about You when circumstances pull me down.

In Jesus name,

Amen