This morning I woke up with the old hymn Great is Thy Faithfulness rolling through my head. I love waking up with a song. It sets the tone for my morning. I have to admit; my mornings haven’t been ideal lately. I feel like I’m living out the movie Groundhog Day. Our family has been in stay-at-home mode for at least 5 weeks now, and with two very young children who need a lot from me 24/7, I’m definitely in survival mode over here. Our days are filled with the same people, the same challenges, the same location, the same sibling fights, the same… everything.
My mornings typically start in the middle of the night when my two-year-old wakes up multiple times. It’s a toss-up whether he will willingly go back to sleep with a snuggle or fight tooth and nail, demanding chocolate milk or some other random necessity, throwing anything he can grab and lashing out at me physically. If he only knew how valuable sleep actually was!
Once I’m finally back in my bed, hopeful for just a few more peaceful hours of slumber, in comes my four-year-old! Every day. He wakes before the sun - he always has - and knows it’s time to start the day! “Mommy. Wake up. It’s morning!” Ugh, fine. Let’s go
There’s no “wake up early before your kids get up so you can have your coffee and quiet time” in this house. That concept is completely foreign to our reality.
But this morning was different. Yes, I was up in the middle of the night with my youngest, but the Lord had other plans for the next few hours.
Yesterday was hard. Emotions were high, the kids were fighting constantly, I felt like I just couldn’t win no matter how hard I tried. We had lots of tears, lots of time-outs, and lots of unmet expectations. I went to bed feeling defeated and really not looking forward to doing the same thing again today.
But today I woke up with God’s gentle reminder that his mercies are new every morning. I was blessed with an hour to myself, with warm coffee and scripture – two children still sleeping. God led me to Lamentations 3:22-23,
22Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
These two verses spoke to me because as lovely as they are, they are nestled in a chapter of crying out in despair. 66 verses full of lament, grief, shaking a fist at the heavens. Why, Lord, why?!
And yet, in the middle of all of the turmoil, we see God’s faithful, unending love. A love like no other. One that does not fail, does not let us become consumed by whatever fires are blazing around us. A love that is compassionate and new every morning.
God needed me to know that He saw my troubles of yesterday. He was with me, loving me through it all. He did not let it consume me, and He granted me the gift of a new morning with the same promise of His faithfulness.
Today is a new day, friends. A new day with new opportunities and chances to try again. A new gift from above.
And though the day is new, I take great comfort in knowing that God is not new. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He has proven Himself faithful and compassionate throughout the ages, and He will continue to be that same God forevermore.
May His constant, never-changing love and faithfulness sustain you through today and all your tomorrows. You will not be consumed. Great is His faithfulness.