Great is Thy faithfulness
O 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 wilt be

Great Is Thy Faithfulness (1923)
By: Thomas Chisholm (1866–1960)

Listen to this modern version of this popular hymn as you prepare to ponder the lyrics. Please make certain to enjoy the video below.

Below is video content always available as part of an extensive archive of resources. We have lots of tools and options designed to help you be Resonant!  Check them out today and please consider becoming a Subscriber to support our mission of providing these tools to everyone with access to the internet!!

Everyone, enjoy this video, and the transcript below.

Transcript may be found below, at the end of the blog.

We begin our journey through this popular hymn which declares the faithfulness of our God, true in every season, experienced by hearts of faith. Let’s tune our hearts.

New Every Morning

I love being in the woods. Just walking quietly through the tress, hearing the crunching of the leaves beneath my feet, the wind rustling through the branches brings a sense of peace . This is especially true in the morning.

Morning often reminds me of how God’s mercies are new. I have made it through another night. The darkness is being chased away as the sun rises. The faithful rising of that ball of fire points me again to the real source of warmth and light and I marvel at His faithfulness anew.

Those familiar words from Lamentations often come to mind then, and every time I sing the opening line of this popular hymn. The rising of the sun and the morning it ushers in signal the entrance of new mercies. Each one is an example of the love and faithfulness of God my Father.

Great is Thy faithfulness
O God my Father

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV

These incredible words declaring God’s faithfulness come in the middle of a book of sadness. Jeremiah was lamenting the fate of Israel who finally had reaped what they had sown. God faithfully kept His promise by exiling them for routinely choosing to walk paths that weren’t His.

Amidst His lament, we read these words of hope. We can certainly learn something when we acknowledge these words emerge from a book of lament. Even in his great distress, the prophet pens these declarations of God’s faithfulness. Whatever you are facing today, recall God’s great faithfulness and declare it once again amidst your laments. 

He is a faithful Father, even when we are rebellious children. He can not deny His nature and that is a very good thing for us, for too often we fail to live up to ours. Where are you longing to see His faithfulness revealed today? Ask Him to simply act consistently with Who He is.

Father, please show Your faithfulness to me again today.

RESONATE!
What trouble are you facing today? Maybe it is a result of your choices, the choices of others, or some combination of the two. Whatever path led you here, you can still choose to trust in God’s faithfulness to see you through it. You may be tempted to deny His nature, but resist that temptation and declare again today. You can lament your troubles as well, for that would put you in good company, but do not fail to thank Him for His faithfulness, even as you invoke it over your sorrows today. Take a few moments and do that now. 

Among the Shadows

When I walk through the woods, especially early or late in the day, I am often captivated by the shadows. Trees cast very long ones, and they remind me there is darkness amidst the beauty. That simple reminder helps me to face my own darkness with a different perspective.

Things change. People change. Situations change.

God never changes.

The fact that He does not cast a shadow is evidence of that. He is a source of light, rather THE Source, so He creates shadows, but does not have one Himself. The illustration is meant to show that as a shadow reveals when something moves or changes, God does not. He remains the same, Faithful.

There is no shadow
Of turning with Thee

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. James 1:17 ESV

Again, light creates shadows. Shadows move either as the lights move or as the object creating the shadow does. But our Father never changes like those shadows because He is the source of Light and every good thing.

Likewise Jesus is the Light of the World, so He has no shadow. This is also an illustration of His unchanging nature. Everything else may change, but Jesus does not.

What impact does that have on your life today? Things will change. You will change. Others will change. Situations will change. Jesus will not. Accordingly, you can depend on Him and His faithfulness through all those other changes.

RESONATE!
What good and perfect gift do you need today? Maybe a change in a perspective. Or a change in some circumstance. Maybe you need a change in your own heart. The Father of lights can bring it. Will you declare His unchanging nature again today and ask Him to bring about changes in you and your life? He is faithful. He will do it. Take a few moments now and step into His light. 

Father, thank You for your mercies which are new every morning. I am sorry that I often need them renewed because I have used up all of yesterday’s allotment. I declare Your faithfulness again today and ask you to change me and my circumstances in whatever way will most help me give You the glory You deserve. In Jesus’ name. Amen!

Mercy-Responsive Tuning!

Keep coming back, and we will work to help you remove the things that may hinder your longing for His return by cultivating an awareness of God’s presence. We will help you tune your heart to live out your worship by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.

Like what you’re finding here?  Fill out the form to the right to get an email with each fresh post and updates of new tools to help you be Resonant.

Please comment below and share if you have found this helpful in your journey of being more resonant.

Video 23.1 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

Great is Thy faithfulness
O 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 wilt be

He is a faithful Father, even when we are rebellious children. He can not deny His nature and that is a very good thing for us, for too often we fail to live up to ours. Where are you longing to see His faithfulness revealed today? Ask Him to simply act consistently with Who He is.

Father, please show Your faithfulness to me again today.

Jesus is the Light of the World, so He has no shadow. This is an illustration of the fact that He is the source of light and also of His unchanging nature. Shadows move as the objects or source of light which create them move. Everything else may change, but Jesus does not.

Jesus, thank You that I can depend on Your unchanging nature.

One of the expressions of the unchanging nature of God is that His compassion never fails, and that is not because we never put it to the test. We are often self-reliant and treat Him in ways that demand His compassion. Fortunately for us, it never fails. Praise Him.

Spirit, I praise You for Your unfailing compassion.

Nothing we do changes God. Or simply, nothing changes God. He is ever the same. He was, and is, and is to come, in every way, in every moment, everywhere. So even when we are not faithful, that’s right, He still is. Thank Him for being the same yesterday, today and forever.

God, thank You for being faithful eternally.

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, Be Resonant.

The post Seeking Mercy Amidst the Shadows appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image Attributions
Great is Thy Faithfulness – https://pixabay.com/photos/yorkshire-autumn-sunshine-morning-2900064/
There is No Shadow of Turning with Thee – https://pixabay.com/photos/nature-forest-moss-landscape-trees-3801537/

All glory and praise
To the God of all grace,
Who hast brought us, and sought us,
And guided our ways.

Refrain:
Hallelujah! Thine the glory.
Hallelujah! Amen.
Hallelujah! Thine the glory.
Revive us again.

Revive Us Again (1863)
By: Mackay, William Paton, M.D. (1839-1885)

Listen to this version in a gospel style as you prepare to ponder this hymn. Please make certain to enjoy the video below.

Below is video content always available as part of an extensive archive of resources. We have lots of tools and options designed to help you be Resonant!  Check them out today and please consider becoming a Subscriber to support our mission of providing these tools to everyone with access to the internet!!

Everyone, enjoy this video, and the transcript below.

Transcript may be found below, at the end of the blog.

We continue our journey through this classic hymn sung across oceans and denominations for 150 years. Our prayer is the same as all the saints who have sung it before, “Revive us again.” Let’s tune our hearts.

What Are You Working With?

Ever played Scrabble? You pick your letters out of the bag and start to line them up to see what words you may be able to create, and you realize you can not think of a single word beyond three letters. You decide to take a turn and exchange all your letters only to end up with 7 consonants, like W-S-M-J-M-R-C!

That is such a frustrating experience. Fortunately, it is only a game, right?

But what about the times it seems life has given you all consonants. Maybe you are in such a moment today. Not quite certain how to turn the letters or the material you are working with into something useful, a word worth more than points, let alone praiseworthy.

You are not alone, and your experience is not uncommon. We have all found ourselves in situations like that. The difference between Scrabble and your life before God is that He wants even those moments of all “consonants” to turn your energy and effort back to Him. The “letters” you have drawn are by no mistake and have come to you as an opportunity to create something that brings glory to God, even if it sounds to you more like a muddled bundle of consonants you might be tempted to utter under your breath in exasperation.

God has given you the material you are working with to give Him praise. Consider the first line of this stanza against that backdrop and the context of the Psalmist’s commitment. Imagine how God may be working through that jumbled mess.

All glory and praise

My mouth is filled with your praise, and with your glory all the day. Psalm 71:8 ESV

Sometimes is seems your mouth is filled with W-S-M-J-M-R-C, but God wants to turn that confusion into praise and He can do it. Will you offer the letters of your life to Him again today and step back to see what the Master De-Scrambler will do?

Jesus, help me give all glory and praise to You.

RESONATE!
Offer the letters you have been given back to God today. He wants to take them and turn them into praise. He can do it. It may be more than you can imagine is even possible, you may feel like you have not vowels, but God makes no mistakes. Tell Him again today you will open up your mouth if He will fill it with praise.

What Will You Make of It?

As you hand your letters back to God fully expecting Him to drop them back in the bag and pull out the perfect letters to spell a great new word, He may just surprise you. You can see PRAISE in the letters clearly once they are set in the right order, but S-I-R-A-P-E looks very different. Might it be possible you actually have all the right material to create the word that will bring God the greatest glory today?

Maybe you feel like you have been suffering through some difficulty and you are really struggling to give God praise. Grace may seem about as far away as you could have ever imagined it might, and yet maybe it is closer than you could have ever dreamed. Give God the opportunity to change your perspective on your circumstances today.

To the God of all grace,

And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 1 Peter 5:10 ESV

Grace is getting what you do not deserve, but normally is seen as better than what you should have gotten. Maybe the letters you have drawn have left you feeling like you do not deserve them in an entirely different way. God is worthy of glory and knows how much we are capable of trusting Him through.

Sometimes God receives the greatest glory when we have received what looks to others like a terrible draw. It may look like that to us as well, but our response determines the true nature of our trust in God. How will you respond? What will you make of the letters you have been given?

RESONATE!
Whether it seems that way or not, the letters you have drawn are the letters that will give you the best opportunity to give glory and praise to Jesus. Resolve to make the most of them today and prepare to be amazed what the God of all grace will do. Rest in your calling into His eternal glory and give praise to Jesus.

Jesus, take the letters of my life and turn them into praise. Help me trust You to restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish me. I declare my desire to make the most of what I have been given. Amen!

Unscrambled Tuning!

Keep coming back, and we will work to help you remove the things that may hinder your longing for His return by cultivating an awareness of God’s presence. We will help you tune your heart to live out your worship by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.

Like what you’re finding here?  Fill out the form to the right to get an email with each fresh post and updates of new tools to help you be Resonant.

Please comment below and share if you have found this helpful in your journey of being more resonant.

Video 22.5 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

All glory and praise
To the God of all grace,
Who hast brought us, and sought us,
And guided our ways.

Refrain:
Hallelujah! Thine the glory.
Hallelujah! Amen.
Hallelujah! Thine the glory.
Revive us again.

We know He is worthy of all glory and praise, and yet two other things happen. Sometimes we take the glory for ourselves, and other times we simply fail to give it to Him. Ask for His forgiveness, and then for His help in giving it all to Him.

Jesus, help me give all glory and praise to you.

Grace is getting what you do not deserve. God has certainly blessed every one of us in this way, not only in the gift of salvation, but in some many smaller ways. Thank Him for the grace He has already shown you, and that which is coming in the future.

Father, thank You for your unmerited grace.

We were each wandering along hopeless and lost and we did not even realize it. God came after us and made a way back to Him through the sacrifice of His Son. No other reason motivates our praise any more than that. Thank the Spirit for that work in you.

Spirit, thank You for seeking me and bringing me.

Like a shepherd Jesus has guided us. Once we come to know His voice, we can surrender to His influence in our lives. Are you seeking guidance in a particular matter today? Ask Jesus to help you discern His voice so you can follow His lead.

Jesus, help me hear Your voice.

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, Be Resonant.

The post Descrambling the Letters of Your P-R-A-I-S-E appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image Attributions
All Glory and Praise – https://pixabay.com/photos/praise-word-scrabble-message-stick-1987229/
To the God of All Grace – https://pixabay.com/photos/scrabble-game-letters-play-1615793/