"It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness."--Lamentations 3:22-23(KJV)
If you have ever struggled with anticipatory anxiety gripped with worry about what the next day will hold, I have good news for you coming from the Word of God! Simply stated, God gives us the capacity to take the bull by the horns each day--no matter what we maybe facing. We can greet each day sans stress, anxiety, and worry knowing that we have been equipped with supernatural courage, strength, and fearlessness. All we have to do is receive this truth by faith.
Recently, we had a medical emergency in our family. What was to be a routine medical exam, ended up requiring hospitalization and surgery. Honestly, it was scary! Long days, late nights, trips to the hospital, meetings with physicians and medical staff required each us to draw from the reservoir that is found in Christ alone. I watched God miraculously upgird our family and blanket us individually and collectively with his peace, strength, grace, and mercy.
I am wholly convinced and unapologetically persuaded that God's word is true. It is never God's will that we be consumed by what we are facing. This would negate his word. How can I say this? Consider Lamentations 3:22-23 which teaches us that because of God's mercies we are not consumed. We are not defeated, finished, or wasted because his tender love towards us never vanishes, ceases, expires, or is taken away from us. And, best of all--each day we receive fresh, new portion of his compassions. Yesterday's mercies were for yesterday. They will not help us today or tomorrow. Yet, we can rely on the faithfulness of God--if he got us through yesterday, whatever that looked like, he can get us through our tomorrow.
God in his sovereignty and omniscience, gifts and empowers us with what we need for each new day. This is why fretting about tomorrow is futile. We expend a tremendous amount of energy worrying about that which God has already equipped us. If anxiety concerning your tomorrow has hit your heart, may I encourage you trust God. His plans for you are good. His plans are to prosper you and not harm you, to give you a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11).
Hebrew Word Study (Lamentations 3:22-23)
- Mercies (H2617) checed: goodness, kindness, pity
- Consumed (H8552) tamam: end, finished, exhausted, spent, destroyed, waster
- Compassions (H7356) racham: mercy, compassion, womb, bowels, pity, tender love
- Fail (H3615) kalah: end, to be finished, vanished, take away, cease, expire
- New (H2319) chadash: new; fresh
- Morning (H1242) boqer: break of day, dawn
- Faithfulness (H530) 'emuwnah: firmness, stability, truth, security
***Hebrew Word Study from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance***
