Day 252 – Week 37 - Faithful
Having a Heart in a Sometimes Heartless World
Having a Heart in a Sometimes Heartless World
Scripture focus: But the fruit of the Spirit is…faithfulness…Galatians 5:22
Faith – pistis – a person who is faithful, reliable, loyal, and steadfast; a person who is devoted, trustworthy, dependable, dedicated, constant, and unwavering. (Paraphrasing Renner in his July 26th devotional)
I spent my morning with a girlfriend, listening to and commiserating with the bad treatment she was receiving at the hands of those who should love her the most – her family. Yet again, she’s hoped for the best and gotten the worst. We expressed our heartfelt emotions about this situation. We acknowledged her right to be resentful. And then we moved on. We let the warm sun fall on our faces and we sipped our mocha lattes with relish. We counted our blessings – one-by-one - and discovered that it was a long list. We remembered the previous year, when we sat in the same spot. Our list that day was short. We speculated and conjectured about how this year would end. We reminded ourselves of the bumpy ride we’d had so far this year – because even big huge enormous blessings bring change, and change inevitably adds stress to our daily routines. And for a moment, before she went her way and I went mine, we celebrated the gift of faithfulness. We licked our lips and smacked them with satisfaction, knowing that our foamy latte would soon be gone – but the gift of faithfulness would continue to be available to us in an unending supply. Our celebration held an under-current of steely determination. We know that faithfulness requires a big heart. Encouraging each other on, like two runners united in their desire to complete a marathon together, we committed ourselves to this gift. We trash talked our doubts and disappointments. We reviewed and recalled who God is and what he wants us to be about. If you want a peek into our private conversation…tune in tomorrow.
Faith – pistis – a person who is faithful, reliable, loyal, and steadfast; a person who is devoted, trustworthy, dependable, dedicated, constant, and unwavering. (Paraphrasing Renner in his July 26th devotional)
I spent my morning with a girlfriend, listening to and commiserating with the bad treatment she was receiving at the hands of those who should love her the most – her family. Yet again, she’s hoped for the best and gotten the worst. We expressed our heartfelt emotions about this situation. We acknowledged her right to be resentful. And then we moved on. We let the warm sun fall on our faces and we sipped our mocha lattes with relish. We counted our blessings – one-by-one - and discovered that it was a long list. We remembered the previous year, when we sat in the same spot. Our list that day was short. We speculated and conjectured about how this year would end. We reminded ourselves of the bumpy ride we’d had so far this year – because even big huge enormous blessings bring change, and change inevitably adds stress to our daily routines. And for a moment, before she went her way and I went mine, we celebrated the gift of faithfulness. We licked our lips and smacked them with satisfaction, knowing that our foamy latte would soon be gone – but the gift of faithfulness would continue to be available to us in an unending supply. Our celebration held an under-current of steely determination. We know that faithfulness requires a big heart. Encouraging each other on, like two runners united in their desire to complete a marathon together, we committed ourselves to this gift. We trash talked our doubts and disappointments. We reviewed and recalled who God is and what he wants us to be about. If you want a peek into our private conversation…tune in tomorrow.
Recommended reading: Isaiah 3 and 4 in the morning; Isaiah 5 and 2 Corinthians 11 in the evening
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