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17th August: Whose Faithfulness?

He who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. 1 Thessalonians 5:24

The whole basis of our Christian life is faith. It is by the grace of God that we are saved through faith. It is the way the Christian should be walking from day to day, by faith not by sight. Christ himself, the ultimate goal, is both the Author and Finisher of our faith.

In the verse above we are reminded that it is because God is faithful that we can fully place our faith in him. We can completely trust ourselves to him when he calls us because he is trustworthy. Faithfulness is a constant divine characteristic upon which we can build our lives. He remains faithful even if we are faithless, for he cannot deny himself (2 Tim 2:13). He is the sovereign Lord who never changes. He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Heb 13:8). What a tremendous encouragement this is to us whose faith is so unstable!

In medical practice we are constantly subject to the pressures and strains of our work, we inevitably suffer overtiredness and mental as well as physical fatigue. Alongside our patients in the crises of life and death, we cannot divorce ourselves from their problems, their depression, anxiety or hopelessness, and like them we are subject to illness and changes of mood. Thank God that his faithfulness endures in spite of our feelings, and the rock on which we are building our lives is secure.

Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not;
As Thou has been Thou for ever wilt be.
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

T O Chisholm

Lord, I believe, help thou my unbelief.

Further reading: Gal 3:1-9. Eph 2:4-10.

DPC