Daily Devo
Befriending Faithfulness
By: Kim Garrett
Friday, December 6, 2024
Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Psalm 37:3 (ESV)
The words faith and faithfulness have a similar meaning but befriend takes faithfulness to another level: "to nourish, or to cultivate." What is the Psalmist trying to tell us about increasing our faith? Is faithfulness something we acquire at salvation? Or is faithfulness something we must cultivate and grow? In a way, both answers are correct.
Faith is birthed out of belief. But Psalms suggests you and I have a role to play in this endeavor too. Psalm 37:3 says we must trust God, do good, and dwell where He places us. Then, the Psalmist invites us to befriend (cultivate) our faithfulness. How in the world do we befriend faithfulness? Better yet, what does befriending faithfulness look like?
- We tend to be faithful to someone who loves us.
The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Lamentations 3:22 (NLT)
- We tend to be faithful (stay loyal) to what we truly believe.
…when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of mere men, but as what it really is, the word of God, which also is at work in you who believe. 1 Thessalonians 2:13 (NASB)
- We tend to be faithful to someone who is faithful to us.
If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is. 2 Timothy 2:13 (NLT)
Having faith means placing all our belief and trust in God's character and His promises. Our faithfulness will grow and deepen when we believe:
- God will take care of me.
- God will direct my path.
- God wants the best for me.
- God loves me unconditionally.
How do we know we have biblical faithfulness? There will be a consistency in what we believe and how we behave!
Read: Hebrews 10:23, 2 Thessalonians 3:3