Steadfast Love
Hello Bride of Christ,
"Slow and steady wins the race." A famous refrain from a classic Aesop fable, "The Turtle and the Hare." As children we were read this fable so we can learn important lessons which would help shape our character. The race between a hare and a turtle was used to show us the effects of pride and relying on our own perception of someone else's skills can become our biggest downfalls. However, the popular moral shared even still today is the importance of being steady. The success found in slowing down and being a consistent person over being someone that is quick and careless. The same can be true of our Lord's love when compared to ours. We could title our Aesop fable "Jesus and the Children."
"Your steadfast love, O Lord, is as vast as the heavens." Psalm 36:5
Psalm 36 by King David, the servant of the Lord, describes the Lord's love towards us, His children. David uses the word steadfast, which means resolute or dutifully firm and unwavering. It is often used to describe a loyalty. A major contrast to us for the Psalm begins with describing, if we are honest with ourselves, the state of our hearts before we accepted God's gift of grace found in Jesus. Before we had a relationship with Jesus sin whispered to us deep within our hearts (Psalm 36:1). Also much like the hare in Aesop's fable, in our blind conceit we were not able to see how wicked we really were (Psalm 36:2). But God.
God in His steadfast love which is as large as the heavens (no limit) continues to pursue us, lead us, embrace us, and be amongst us. God does not allow our response towards Him to change His character. For God is love (1John 4:8) and that love is unwavering (steadfast). In the old testament His steadfast love guided the children of Israel through the wilderness and in the new testament His steadfast love sent His only begotten son, Jesus, to die for our gift of salvation.
Bride of Christ, may we recognize like David how precious God's steadfast love is (Psalm 36:7) and hold onto it. Let us not be like the hare and rely on our own ability and become self confident in our wavering selves, but rely on the Lord's steadfast love! As it is captured in yet another Psalm "The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love." (Psalm 103:8) So turn your focus to Jesus and press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ is calling us (Philippians 3:14) because Jesus love for you will not grow faint or ever change for truly His love being slow and steady wins the race!
