New Every Morning

“They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.’ The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” — Lamentations 3:23–26 (NIV)

Yesterday, as I sat with a friend over breakfast, we talked about all the things Christian friends usually talk about—what’s going on with each other, family, church, society, and hope. Every time we get together, the conversation always includes hope. The hope we can have because of our faith in God. We’ve both lived enough life to know that sometimes when darkness descends, it’s only by that hope that we are lifted.

The words of the old hymn Great Is Thy Faithfulness came to mind as we talked—especially that gentle assurance, “morning by morning new mercies I see.” Those words echo the very hope that rises from Lamentations, a book born out of deep sorrow and surprising grace.

Lamentations, traditionally attributed to the prophet Jeremiah, rises from one of Israel’s darkest seasons. Jerusalem has fallen. The people are scattered. The temple lies in ruins. The poet does not hide from grief—he names it, feels it, laments it. Yet right in the middle of this book of sorrow, a surprising word breaks through: God’s mercies are new every morning. Even in exile, even in devastation, even when nothing looks redeemable, God’s faithfulness has not failed.

This is the heart of biblical lament: not despair, but honest sorrow held in the presence

of a faithful God. It is grief braided with trust. It is the courage to say, “This hurts,” and the faith to add, “but God is still good.” The poet discovers that hope is not the denial of pain—it is the refusal to let pain have the final word.

And isn’t that where many of us live today? We look at our families, our communities, our world, and we feel the weight of things not yet healed. We carry our own private exiles—losses, disappointments, uncertainties. Yet like my friend across the breakfast table, we keep returning to hope. Not because life is easy, but because God is faithful. Not because we see the whole path, but because we trust the One who walks with us.

Lamentations invites us to wait—not passively, but expectantly. To seek God in the quiet moments. To trust that even when we cannot see the way forward, God is already at work. Morning by morning, mercy by mercy, God meets us again.

Faithful God, in the places where we feel scattered or weary, meet us with your new mercies. Teach us to wait with hope, to trust your goodness, and to rest in your unfailing love. Lift us when the shadows grow long and remind us that your faithfulness is greater than anything we face. Amen.

Grace & Peace,

Pastor Tim