“Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.” Revelation 2:10b
One of my morning devotions this week focused on the word ‘faithful’. The Bing dictionary gives the following meanings for this word, “1. Unwavering in belief: believing firmly in something or somebody, especially a religion or a political doctrine. 2. Consistently loyal: consistently trustworthy and loyal, especially to a person, promise, or duty. 3. Not adulterous or promiscuous: not having sexual relations with somebody other than a spouse or partner. 4. Conscientious: displaying or resulting from a sense of responsibility or devotion to duty. 5. Correct: accurate and true; "a faithful account of the events".
To what are you faithful? I have been faithful to many things in this world, machines, people and some dogs but ultimately, they have failed me and I at times failed them as well. There is really only one sure thing that we will never fail us; our Triune God. The Holy Trinity never fails us, never will; upon Him we place our trust.
The Haitian word for faithful is ‘Fidel.’ If you asked a child in a Trinity/HOPE feeding program who they place their trust in, their initial response would probably, and prayerfully be ‘Bondye’ or God. Their HOPE is built on nothing less. Their second answer for what they place their trust in are the cooks at their school as typically when they get to school in the morning they usually peek around the corner to see if their smiling faces are there and the fire has been started. The vodou followers in their neighborhood continue to plant seeds of unbelief that Bondye does not like them and there will be no food at their school. Thanks to you, the fire is lit, their faith is secure and growing stronger and the lies of the vodou people are once again proven wrong. Steve Green wrote the song ‘Find us Faithful’ and it seemed like a wonderful way to close this devotion.
“We're pilgrims on the journey of the narrow road and those who've gone before us line the way cheering on the faithful, encouraging the weary. Their lives a stirring testament to God's sustaining grace. Surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses let us run the race not only for the prize but as those who've gone before us. Let us leave to those behind us the heritage of faithfulness passed on through godly lives. Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful. May the fire of our devotion light their way. May the footprints that we leave lead them to believe and the lives we live inspire them to obey. Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful after all our hopes and dreams have come and gone and our children sift through all we've left behind. May the clues that they discover and the memories they uncover become the light that leads them to the road we each must find.”
Dear Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Amen.
May God be with you…Jay