"New Every Morning"

Scripture Passage

Lamentations 2:1-4:22

Scripture Focus

The faithful love of the LORD never ends!
     His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness;
     his mercies begin afresh each morning.
I say to myself, “The LORD is my inheritance;
     therefore, I will hope in him!”
                    (Lamentations 3:22-24 NLT)

Observation

I’m thinking, today, of what Judah’s sins cost Jeremiah (the likely author of Lamentations). In spite of great persecution and in spite of great opposition, Jeremiah had remained true to his God, true to his calling, and true to his people. Now, destruction has come—as God justly promised it would—and Jeremiah is watching a destroyed people struggle for survival. Indeed, there’s no reason to believe that Jeremiah was exempt from that struggle himself.

Still, Jeremiah remains true to God, true to his calling, and true to his people. He mourns with them. He weeps over their losses. And he continues to find his strength in the Lord. What a remarkable declaration:

I will never forget this awful time,
     as I grieve over my loss.
Yet I still dare to hope
     when I remember this:

The faithful love of the LORD never ends!
     His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness;
     his mercies begin afresh each morning.
I say to myself, “The LORD is my inheritance;
     therefore, I will hope in him!”
                  (Lamentations 3:20-24 NLT)

What a remarkable faith! What remarkable obedience! What a remarkable identification with those he’d been called to serve! I’m challenged in regard to my own faith, my own obedience, my own steadfastness. “O Lord, may I still dare to hope…in You!”

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