O, Lord.
Great is Your faithfulness to me.
Your faithfulness has been evident throughout my life. Revealed to me in different ways.
Coming to me at appointed moments.
Your faithfulness began at my first breath. A breath that came with premature birth. A breath that came at a time before modern neonatal care. Your favor was upon me: I had no health complications other than low birth weight.
Your faithfulness came in my name. A name my parents decided upon weeks before my birth. A name that I didn't like growing up because it wasn't cool. A name I came to treasure when I realized it was it in the Bible. Sharon: a plain in the Holy Land where beautiful roses grew. A place where Isaiah said the glory and majesty of the Lord will be seen. A name of truth personally fulfilled, for I indeed see Your glory and majesty.
Your faithfulness came in the sweet revelation to me, a compliant 7-year old child, who heard the gospel and accepted it as fact, never questioning Your authority, never doubting Your Word.
Your faithfulness came to me in an acute awareness that I didn't understand at my young age, an awareness that is so very rooted and intertwined with my faith journey. A physical awareness of the brilliant warmth of the sun shining through the stained glass windows; the polished dark wooden pews; the twinkling lights of the chandelier; the pleasing scent of pine that drifted in the open Sunday school windows on hot summer days and the layers of pinestraw that covered the churchyard in the fall. The awareness would birth in my heart a yearning for the comfort and security I found in that old country church: an awareness I associated with the Ancient of Days.
Your faithfulness came to me when, as a 15 year old, I was caught beneath the churning waters of a raging ocean. While I was held down by the weight of the water, Your Radiance shown through the water's depths. I felt warmth. I felt unexplainable peace that this was the day I would meet You face to face. I willingly surrendered my last breath. Yet You sent a stranger to rescue me and lift me out of my appointment with death. O, the precious gift of air and the fresh realization that You were real. A gift in the revelation that You had a plan for me beyond my current teenaged struggles and heartaches.
Your faithfulness came to me when I was on a youth retreat in high school. Unlike ever before, my senses were keenly aware of Your Presence. It was in the salty morning breeze on the summer porch of an old sugar plantation house. It was in the powerful rhythmic pounding of the surf on the beach nearby. It was in the early morning sunlight peeking over the mountains. It was in the birds' song. It was on the pages of Scripture that I had never read before. A fresh spiritual wind blew into my heart; it was a gift I couldn't explain. A gift I treasured and held close. A gift I pondered in the depths of my soul.
Your faithfulness stayed with me when I unintentionally wandered in my young adult years. When my life was in upheaval and I couldn't seem to get my footing or direction. When I was discouraged and felt unworthy. When life wasn't going according to my plans. When I was lonely and searching for connection and community. When I was desperate to be loved. When I chose to get involved with someone who didn't share my faith. When I didn't recognize Your Holy Spirit's whispers the morning of my wedding. When I chose to ignore the persistent Voice that was shaking me to my core. When I chose a man over You.
Your faithfulness came to me on a dreary November morning when my husband told me he no longer loved me. You met me on the cold floor where I lay sobbing. You met me in my surrender. You welcomed me home. You gave me courage to walk the journey into singleness. You gave me strength to persist. You gave me a new identity. You gave me new life. You gave me hope.
Your faithfulness comes to me each and every day. You walk with me during the hard days in the valley and the good days on the mountaintop. You are with me in seasons of little and the seasons of abundance. You guide me through the predictable and ordinary, the unexpected and the extraordinary. You hear my prayers when I pray. You bottle my tears when I cry. You give me peace in my storm. You reveal truth when I seek. You give wisdom when I ask. You answer when I call. You forgive me when I miss the mark. You love me without condition and without ceasing. You call me Your own.
My life is a testimony of praise.
Great is Your faithfulness to me.
O, Lord.
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness.
- Lamentations 3: 22-23
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