Faithfulness: Jeremiah or Jonah?

The past many months have been, what’s the word, hard. Maybe heavy. There have been a lot of things going on in our lives, and the Lord is teaching me so much. Situations have been hard, and people have been extremely hard. I have been thinking a lot about Jeremiah and Jonah, and my faithfulness. Jonah was disobedient, and unwillingly. Not only did he not want to go, the Lord had to send a fish to swallow him and send him to share and all of Nineveh was saved. Jeremiah was extremely faithful for 40 years, and no one listened to him. He is known as the weeping prophet. A lot of time people look at success in faithfulness from what comes out of your ministry like Jonah. I would say that Jeremiah was the more faithful, even though he did not have the people to show like Jonah did.


Anyway, I have been thinking a lot about my faithfulness over the last year. There have been a few people, who I absolutely love, that have made it clear to me that I am not faithful, and they do not respect me or even think well of me. They said specific things that if are true I wouldn’t like me either. To say this broke my heart would be a big understatement. I have been struggling through what they said, and what part is truth and what you just can’t see. Some of faithfulness you will never be able to see in another person.

I have realized that I have not been as faithful as I wanted, and want to be. This breaks my heart even more. Because as much as I am a people person and love relationships and want to have good ones. I want to be faithful to the Lord more than anything in my life. No I am not the person that some people think I am, and have told me I am, but I need to grow. I want to bring the Lord glory in every breath of my life. I have struggled through many things these past few months.

Yet, the Lord encourages my heart through His Word. A few weeks ago I was reading Psalm 119, which I love, and a verse punched me in the face. Vs. 116 “Sustain me according to Your Word, that I may live; And do not let me be ashamed of my hope.” First of all the absolute only way I am Sustained is through His Word. He definitely sustains me with His Word. Second, my hope is Him. That, I am not ashamed of. My hope is not that people will see me as whatever I want them to see me, or that I would be good at what I do. Or whatever it may be. My hope is Christ, and I can’t help but remember “that He who began a good work in me will perfect in the day of Christ Jesus.” Thank You Lord that I cannot pull myself up, but that You will perfect the work You started in me. And, that You are faithful, even when I am faithless. That, I can never be ashamed of.