As I read through the Bible I am amazed at how many times I will come across a verse that is so familiar, or possibly even one that I have memorized, but I am ignorant to the CONTEXT in which that verse came from. The context of verses is of utmost importance and, today, the context in which I read the following verses just blew me away. Some of these verses I have had memorized for a long time and sung many times but being reminded of the context in which they came out of made them light up in ways they had not before.
I was reading in the book of Lamentations. The picture Jeremiah paints is so dismal that it can actually turn your stomach reading through his description of the destruction of Israel and Judah in Lamentations 1 and 2..."Jerusalem sinned grievously; therefore she became filthy; all who honored her despise her, for they have seen her nakedness...her uncleanness was in her skirts;...women eat the fruit of their womb, the children of their tender care". And over and over it says that the Lord has done all this. This is tough stuff!
Then comes Lamentations 3. The verses in 22 and following seem almost out of place but that is what makes them all the more glorious and their truth so beautiful:
"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him." The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord."
So, I sit here thinking about what Jeremiah wrote and being greatly humbled and reminded that I am NEVER without reason to praise the Lord. He is the same yesterday, today and always. His love continues to know no end, His mercy is boundless, each day is a gift from God's loving hands and shows His faithfulness in the midst of our unfaithfulness and He has been and will always be MORE than enough for all of me...the only portion that will truly satisfy. What hope, what joy, what peace, what quietness of heart comes resting in those truths and the God Who spoke them...no matter what our day may hold!!!
Comments
And, like you said, there is suddenly this ray of hope that shines out of all that darkness. It was like a breath of fresh air to my grieved soul.
"But, this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:" (3:21)
Just like so many Psalms that pour our despair, fear, or grief there is that "but" to pull them - and us - back to reality.
It was what I needed to hear at the time - and don't we all need that reminder on occasion?
Thank you, Kristin. I'm going to have to catch up with you more often. These large doses are a little too much to take in all at once :) I mean that in a good way, btw.