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Church Talk: Experiencing God’s steadfast love

Friday 19 January 2024 | Written by Supplied | Published in Church Talk, Features

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Church Talk: Experiencing God’s steadfast love
Manna is bread from heaven. Manna is what God fed the Israelites until they entered the promised land. The manna was provided for their physical nourishment while they were in the wilderness. 24011804

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV)

Not a day goes by that we’re not in need of God’s grace and peace.

Every morning we need His Spirit to fill us again, to strengthen us for what’s ahead.

Every day we need God to speak to our heart’s words of love and hope, to help keep our focus on the more important things of life. Because trying to run this race of life without Jesus will do nothing but drain us dry. 

For 40 years the children of Israel were wandering around in circles. The journey many times became intense, hot, and dry. I’m sure they became weary and frustrated. But God met them where they were. He made sure they had what they needed. They learned how much they had to rely on Him through every hard and gruelling step.

When they were hungry God sent manna. Every day He provided a miracle, right before their eyes. They just had to pick it up.

The Bible says… “When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor. When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was.

Moses said to them, “It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat. This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Everyone is to gather as much as they need. Take an omer for each person you have in your tent.’” The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much, some little. And when they measured it by the omer, the one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little. Everyone had gathered just as much as they needed. Then Moses said to them, “No one is to keep any of it until morning” (Exodus 16:14-19 NIV).

And just like the people of Israel had to gather it fresh every morning in the wilderness, so it is with us. They couldn’t store it up; they had to look for it daily. And God always provided. Each morning it was there, waiting for them.

Every day He made sure it met their needs, they were satisfied, they were nourished, they were cared for. And they never lacked, for God’s resources never run dry as echoed by the author of Lamentations that “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV)

That’s what He does for us every single morning but sometimes in our business we miss it because we try to make things happen in our own strength and most times forgetting what matters most. But even in those times, His grace is there. He waits for us. His patience and His peace never run dry.

Each day, His miracles are all around, right before our eyes. We just have to look for them, to pick up His provision, and stay in His Presence.

Jesus covers our past, secures our future, and gives us all that we need for each day. He promises that as we come to Him and allow His truths to nourish and saturate our lives, we will be satisfied. We will have all that we need to live abundantly and freely in this life.

As we move into 2024 don’t waste another day trying to do life all in your own strength. We were never meant to carry the load and burdens that we face daily; we will always fall short. But we can daily choose to experience God’s steadfast love by living in and through His power.

Jesus again reminds us that…

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” (John 10:11 NIV)

“Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.’” (John 6:35 NIV)

Friends don’t ever doubt that He’s not there for you, or that He doesn’t care about what you’re going through. He loves you more than you could ever imagine, and promises to be with you, always as you continue to experience His steadfast love throughout 2024.

  • Pastor Eric Toleafoa from the Seventh-day Adventist Church