One True Thing
Odessa Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park
My favorite song is “Great is Thy Faithfulness.” I grew up in a small church in Arizona where my dad preached and led the singing while my mom played the piano, so this particular hymn has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember.
Fast forward from those early days in the desert.
Our family moved to Colorado Springs in the summer of 2009 and quickly connected with a soul care ministry called “The Potter’s Inn.” Located about 45 minutes to the west of the Springs, The Potter’s Inn provided a space for much needed retreat for those on the frontlines of ministry. I came to love going up to the retreat center and walking the prayer trail, which is also where I realized just how much the lyrics of “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” had been forming and speaking into the depths of my soul all these years. It was on the prayer trail in the mountains outside of Divide, Colorado, that I opened my mouth and allowed the lyrics and melody of this song to bear witness to what felt most true in my soul.
“Great is Thy faithfulness, Oh God, my Father. There is no shadow of turning with Thee. Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not. As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be. Great is Thy faithfulness. Great is Thy faithfulness. Morning by morning new mercies I see. All I have needed Thy hands have provided. Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me.”
Whether sitting at a piano and leading worship in a church, or walking a mountain road in Nepal, or standing in a prayer labyrinth in Malibu, or waking up in a tent in Zimbabwe, or standing on the roof of a compound in Haiti, or overlooking the city of Antigua in Guatelala, I’ve continued singing these lyrics in countless spaces and places all around the world. And when my time on earth comes to an end, I hope these words will once again be lifted up in remembrance of a life fully surrendered to God.
The passage of scripture most closely connected to the words of my soul’s song is Lamentations 3:23-24.
“The steadfast love of the Lord NEVER ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new EVERY morning; great is your faithfulness.” (NRSV)
The context of this hopeful refrain is a lament by the ““weeping prophet,” Jeremiah, who feels alone in his calling and regularly struggles to see how his ministry makes a difference. Jeremiah regularly spoke out against the people of Judah for their penchant toward wickedness and a general failure to trust Yahweh’s commitment toward them. It’s easy to imagine how isolated and defeated he must have felt as he spoke up against corruption and pleaded with his people to return to their covenantal relationship.
Lamentations 3 is a great example of just how harried Jeremiah felt as he bore witness to his own inner turmoil in relation to the exile of God’s chosen people.
“Cut off from every avenue of escape, God has fenced me in and tied me up with heavy chains. Crying and carrying on do me no good; God shuts out my prayer. Closed in and blocked by walls of cut stone, what paths I have left, He has twisted and confused my steps.” (Lamentations 3:7-9 The Voice)
The beauty of this particular passage is Jeremiah’s honesty. He is in touch with the harsh reality of life as he freely pours out his complaints and accurately describes the tension deep within. In the middle of his honest assessment, however, we notice a drastic shift in his focus.
“Grieving, my soul thinks back; these thoughts cripple, and I sink down. Gaining hope, I remember and wait for this thought:” (Lamentations 3:20-21 The Voice)
The thought eventually comes: God’s steadfast love is the one true thing. God is 100% committed to us. No matter what we’re facing, we are seen and heard and loved. I appreciate how The Voice paraphrases Jeremiah’s settled “knowing” of God’s unending commitment.
How enduring is God’s loyal love;
the Eternal has inexhaustible compassion.
Here they are, every morning, new!
Your faithfulness, God, is as broad as the day.
Have courage, for the Eternal is all that I will need.
My soul boasts, “Hope in God; just wait.”
(Lamentations 3:22-24 The Voice)
Up to this point in our “Being With Jesus” series, we’ve already looked at care and communication as characteristics of a healthy relationship. Commitment, according to the Oxford Dictionary, is “the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause, activity, etc.” We see the level of God’s commitment to us in today’s passage, and we experience the reality of that commitment through the “with-ness” of God through the indwelling Holy Spirit.
As I hiked the mountains of Colorado during my sabbatical this past July, I was continually reminded of God’s steadfast love and mercy - new every morning - and I was inspired to “Hope in God” and wait on the Lord as I sang “Great is Thy faithfulness, oh Lord, to me.” It felt as if I was walking with Jesus, simply enjoying being with him, as I contemplated the joys and the struggles of my life up to this point. I was comforted to know that God was ALWAYS with me, not just a forensic ascent to a truth but a relational response to the longings of my soul.
Is this something your soul longs to know as well? What would it look like to name the harsh realities of your life and simply wait on Jesus to hear his response? What song would rise up in you? You can share my lifelong anthem if that’s helpful.
“Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth. Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide. Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow. Blessings all mine, with ten-thousand beside.”
May you know the inexaustible love and faithfulness of God and respond to Jesus’ invitation to simply be with him. He has never left you and he never will. You have an open invitation to experience the intimacy and commitment that is rarely offered anywhere else in this world. Trust that this is true for you, too, and see how your soul returns back home and finds real rest.