Faithful

In The Hidden Face of God: Finding the Missing Door to the Father Through Lament¹ Michael Card entitles the 30th chapter, “The Disturbing Faithfulness of God.” I was uncomfortable through the entire reading because he was relevant and right. Even the discussion and meditation questions at the end were timely. He begins with a quote from Walter Brueggemann.

You are not the God we would have chosen. (137)

I appreciate that: it’s religiously incorrect, and it’s real.

Toward the end of the meditation, he asks,

Could it possibly be true that the miracle is not provision, but Presence? (140)

I know His presence is what I should choose, but there are times when my limited understanding would rather choose His provision.

When I think of my most faithful friends, the first one that comes to mind is one I met through youth ministry. We’ve both since stepped down, but she has remained a faithful friend. Her faithfulness, though, isn’t revealed by what she does for me (which is already enough), but more clearly by her presence. Why do I hold one definition of faithfulness for my friends, and another for my Father?

Thankfully, God is not only faithful, but relentlessly so.

…if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself. 2 Timothy 2.13

1. Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2007. [↩]