He's Been Faithful

My daughter, Rachel, has loved to shop since she was old enough to express an opinion (which was pretty early). When she was a toddler and preschooler, she loved to get into the racks of clothes and try to hide. It was troublesome. Fortunately for me, she never has learned to be quiet so I could always hear where she was. She would call, "Mommy, find me," and giggle. I would walk around in the girls section of the store calling "Rachel," and she would call, "Mommy" like a game of Marco Polo. She never got far from me; part of the game was to see how close to me she could get and still "hide".

One day when she was almost 4, she didn't answer me. I became frantic. Her giggles quickly gave her up and I decided to teach her a lesson. I knew she could see where I was because she could see my feet from her hiding place in the rack of clothes. I whispered her name once more and stepped behind a shelf that went all the way to the ground. I could see where she was but she could no longer see me. I heard her call, "Mommy." I said nothing. She called again, "Mommy." Her head popped out of the top of the clothes rack (she's always been tall). I could see her and could see that she was safe. "Mommy?" She came out into the open and put her hands on her hips, "Mommy, I'm here waiting." A salesperson behind the counter in the store heard her and saw me put my finger to my lips asking her not to give me away. I was expecting Rachel to become upset and have a split second of feeling lost before Mommy "found" her. Rachel, however, had other ideas. Rachel marched straight over to the sales lady and said, "Mommy isn't playing with me any more. She would not leave me. Is she hiding in there with you?"

To Rachel, the fact that I didn't answer her right away didn't mean I had forsaken her. It only meant I didn't do what she expected. She knew that I would take care of her.

We should have the same concept of God's presence. He may not answer as we would expect and we may not hear him answer at all. But he promised never to leave us or forsake us. Even when we don't feel His presence or think He's listening, He's faithful to us. He's faithful even when we're faithless. He's watching for us even when we're playing games or hiding from Him. He may be waiting for something from us, but he's watching and waiting faithfully.

anything but typical



He's Been Faithful by Carol Cymbalta

In my moments of fear,
Through every pain every tear
There's a God who's been faithful to me
When my strength was all gone,
When my heart had no song
Still my God has been faithful to me
Every word He promised is true
What I thought was impossible
I've seen my God do

He's been faithful, faithful to me
Looking back His love and mercy I see
When in my heart I have questioned
And failed to believe
He's been faithful, faithful to me

When my heart looked away,
Though many times I could not pray
Even then He's been faithful to me
The days I've spent so selfishly,
Reaching out for what pleased me
Still in love He's been faithful to me
And every time I come back to Him
I see Him waiting with His open arms
And I know once again

He's been faithful, faithful to me
Looking back His love and mercy I see
When in my heart I have questioned
Even failed to believe
Yet He's been faithful, faithful to me.