Here’s an Experiment: Frame Your Day With God’s Love and Faithfulness
It is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning,
your faithfulness in the evening,
I wonder what would happen if you were to take Psalm 92:2 very literally. What difference might it make in your life if the first thing you did when you got up in the morning was to proclaim God’s unfailing love, and the last thing you did was to proclaim his faithfulness?
I realize Psalm 92:2 doesn’t say exactly this. It speaks of morning and evening more generally, not “the first thing” and “the last thing.” But my question remains more or less the same. What difference might it make in your life if you actually framed your day with professions of God’s love and faithfulness?
I don’t know about you, but I find it easy to begin and end my day by focusing on things other than God’s goodness. Often, my first thoughts in the morning have to do with the demands of the day. My last thoughts might rehearse the events of the day or lingering concerns. I try to give these to the Lord, but sometimes they stick around to keep me up for a while. Perhaps I should try something different. Perhaps you should too.
Let me propose an experiment. If you’re willing, join me in putting Psalm 92:2 into practice this week. Let’s start our day with proclaiming God’s unfailing love. Plus, right before our heads hit the pillow, let’s proclaim God’s faithfulness. We might think of how God has been faithful in that very day, thanking him for all he’s done to bless and use us. If you’re looking for biblical passages to guide your morning and evening reflections, let me suggest a few options. Psalm 36:5-7, 57:8-11, Psalm 100:5, and Lamentations 3:22-24 would work wonderfully both morning and evening. Of course, there are many others from which to choose. When it comes to celebrating God’s love, Romans 8:35-39 is unsurpassed.
If you participate in this experiment, I’d be most interested in what you experience throughout the week. Please feel free to email me and share your results. Or, if you wish to share your experiences with others, you can add your comments to the archived version of this reflection at the High Calling website. Here’s the link.
QUESTIONS FOR FURTHER REFLECTION: How might your life be different if you began your day proclaiming God’s love and ended your day confessing his faithfulness? Are you willing to try doing this for a week?
PRAYER: Dear Lord, how I thank you for the fact that you love me with an unfailing love. I can’t even imagine what I’d be like apart from the assurance and encouragement of your love. Thank you for making your love known to me, in Scripture, in my experience, in the gathering of your people, and most of all in Jesus Christ.
Thank you also, Lord, for your faithfulness and reliability. Though I can be faithless, you are always there, always solid, always reliable. You never fail. Your faithfulness is the foundation of my life.
Help me, I pray, to frame each day this week with the proclamation of your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night. In the process, may I come to a deeper understanding and experience of who you are.
All praise be to you, O God, because you are loving and faithful. Amen.
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This devotional comes from The High Calling: Everyday Conversations about Work, Life, and God (www.thehighcalling.org). You can read my Daily Reflections there, or sign up to have them sent to your email inbox each day. This website contains lots of encouragement for people who are trying to live out their faith in the workplace. The High Calling is associated with Laity Lodge, where I work.