Verse of the Day 1/20
Lamentations 3:21-23 But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness. English Standard Version (ESV)
Verses 22 and 23 in Lamentations 3 are probably favorite verses for many people including me. However, I doubt that the book itself ranks very high among the favorites in the Bible. These verse of hope are found smack dab in the middle of a book of lamenting. We may lament about what was, what might have been and probably won't be, but we don't have to dwell on those things or be consumed by them, because as God followers we have hope. It is not a wishy-washy hope but one that is rock solid, Hebrews 6:19 refers to it as "we have this hope as an anchor", firm and secure.
There will be a "changing of the guard", so to speak, in our nation today. A change in leadership. There will be policy changes, and there could be sweeping changes that may impact our lives. We should not have to worry or be overly concerned as long as we find our rest, find our hope in God.
I've posted verses 23 and 23 often over the years, but today I included verse 21. It goes along well with what we've been considering the last few days. Being in God's Word and in prayer, having His presence with us enables us to "call to mind" these things when we need hope.
John Piper writes "If we don't "call to mind" what God has said about himself and about us, we languish. O how I know this from painful experience! Don't wallow in the mire of godless messages. I mean the messages in your own head. "I can't . . ." "She won't . . ." "They never . . ." "It has never worked . . ." The point is not that these are true or false. Your mind will always find a way to make them true, unless you "call to mind" something greater. God is the God of the impossible. Reasoning your way out of an impossible situation is not as effective as reminding your way out of it."
There is no shadow of turning with Thee,
Thou changest not, Thy compassion's, they fail not,
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.
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!
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.
-- In Christ, Mike Folllow the Verse of the Day blog at http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace. NIV
Lamentations 3:21-24The Message (MSG)
It's a Good Thing to Hope for Help from God
19-21 I'll never forget the trouble, the utter lostness,
the taste of ashes, the poison I've swallowed.
I remember it all—oh, how well I remember—
the feeling of hitting the bottom.
But there's one other thing I remember,
and remembering, I keep a grip on hope:
22-24 God's loyal love couldn't have run out,
his merciful love couldn't have dried up.
They're created new every morning.
How great your faithfulness!
I'm sticking with God (I say it over and over).
He's all I've got left.
No comments:
Post a Comment