Let Me Introduce You To Faithful
My friends at Touching Hearts have joined me this year in studying A.W Tozer’s, The Attributes of God. Our lives have been so deeply impacted that I don’t think it would be trite to say we are changed forever. Who God is changes everything.
As we concluded the study yesterday, twenty women volunteered to share their understanding of a particular attribute and how they have experienced God. The atmosphere was filled with the glory of God as we declared his character.
I wish it were possible to replay it all right here in the middle of a blog. Of course that’s impossible, but I did invite one person to share her “Faithful God” testimony. Please welcome Robin Dixon to the Deeper Still blog this week. Robin is faithfully stepping through an incredibly difficult season of life. I am so blessed to have a seat pulled close to watch how she is placing her foot right inside of God’s footsteps. It is obvious that she believes his promises to lead her step-by-step and provide everything that she needs. Thank you, Robin, for letting us see “Faithful God” through your journey.
God is Faithful
Last Tuesday night Martha asked us to describe faithfulness in one word. I knew what my word was. You see, during worship that night, something happened. I experienced God in a way I had never before. I was in the presence of Faithfulness. He was there. It wasn’t something he did, but who he was. All of heaven came down to earth that night during worship--just as I had been praying it to be. Everything ceased to be that night. There was no sickness, no death, no need, no striving, just Jesus and His name is “Faithful”.
The “one thing” and most important thing to me from our chapter in Tozer’s book were these three words: “faithfulness is relational."
God’s faithfulness is not an experience that is defined as an event in receiving his promises or his provision (even though we all have those stories, as we should), but it is a person. Faithful is His name. You see I wanted an event, not a person. I had been waiting on an event of faithfulness to come. “Heaven come down please!” I wanted life to make sense, but in that moment during worship, he was there. He is “ALWAYS”. That is my word. In that moment there was no time, no struggle of sickness, no stress from a job, no emotionality to cause me to forget. There was no me or God. There was just one: us. In John 17, Jesus asked the Father that we the church would be one as he and the Father are one. I now know that to be true.
We have left Faithful to seek after faithfulness. We all pray and long for an event to happen, but Faithful is someone in whom I can rest and trust, no matter the outcome. We all have been there and know those who, time-after-time, speak of his faithfulness. But it’s never enough. His faithfulness changes things (and it should), but when we meet Him, it changes us.
Have you met Him?
If you point to an event and say, “God is faithful”, you have received faithfulness. Can I be so bold to say you have experienced his hand, not his person. Events come and go, but Faithful is always, eternal, evermore. I have found myself lately leaving his presence to run after his promise or his provision, but I am so thankful the Holy Spirit has reminded me, once again, of His name: Faithful.
“God is faithful (reliable, trustworthy, and therefore ever true to His promise, and He can be depended on); by Him you were called into companionship and participation with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:9 (AMPC)
“Faithful is He Who is calling you [to Himself] and utterly trustworthy, and He will also do it …. “
1 Thessalonians 5:24 (AMPC)