In this episode, we delve into the concept of faithfulness, exploring its biblical significance and the essential role it plays in our daily lives. We discuss how God's unwavering nature exemplifies true faithfulness and how, through the Holy Spirit, we can cultivate this quality within ourselves. By examining the Greek term "pistis," we uncover the profound implications of faithfulness as trust and reliability, which are critical in our relationships and commitments. We emphasize that faithfulness is not merely about initial enthusiasm but rather a steadfast commitment to our promises, even amidst challenges.

Takeaways:

1. The podcast emphasizes that the teachings shared are meant for spiritual encouragement and personal reflection, rather than professional medical advice.
2. Listeners are reminded that faithfulness is rooted in God's character, which remains constant regardless of our actions or circumstances.
3. The episode explores how faithfulness is developed through the Holy Spirit, enabling us to commit to our promises even during challenging times.
4. The discussion underscores the importance of small acts of faithfulness as foundational for larger responsibilities and opportunities in life.
5. Faithfulness is depicted as a steady presence that reflects God's unwavering nature and is necessary for healthy relationships and commitments.
6. Listeners are encouraged to identify areas of their lives where they can practice consistency and faithfulness, particularly in their commitments to others.

The content shared on Living the Selah Life is for spiritual encouragement, personal reflection and informational purposes only.

It is not intended to diagnose, treat or replace medical, psychological or professional advice of any kind.

Please consult a licensed health care provider or qualified professional for any physical, mental or emotional health concerns.

The views expressed are those of the host, Kimberly Lockanore, and are based on personal experience and Biblical insight, not clinical training.

Welcome back to Living the Selah Life, a podcast that invites you to slow down, breathe and reconnect with the presence of God.

I am your host, Kim, and this space is for anyone longing to become more familiar with his presence.

Each episode is an intentional pause, a moment to reflect, realign and remember that God meets us when we create space for Him.

So breathe.

Take a breath.

You are right on time.

Let's live the Selah life together.

Hey Hey y'.

All.

Welcome back.

Welcome back.

In our last episode, we explored self control as the Holy Spirit's inner strength that enables us to make wise choices amongst many other things from a heart of love.

Today we are going to talk about faithfulness.

Faithfulness.

We will discover what biblical faithfulness is and how God's reliable nature shows up in our everyday life.

So we will jump right on into our main teaching today and I'm going to call it the Steady Presence of God in Us.

This word faithfulness is so rich.

I just love it.

It is one of.

Well, I like all the fruit, but this one is one of my favorite in particular because it is so, so difficult to find people that are just faithful.

Faithful because it is what they have decided to do.

Faithful in all situations, all circumstances.

And when you find you some my friends, you better hold them dear.

So the fact that God is faithful all the time and we can count on him being exactly who he said he would be all the time is just amazing.

So you know how I like to do?

I like to look up the Greek word for a lot of our English words because as I said before the English words, the English language period does zero justice for the richness that the Greek and the Hebrew words provide.

We're talking about faithfulness.

And the Greek word for faithfulness that's used In Galatians, chapter 5, verses 22 is Pistis.

Pistis.

It's spelled P I S T I S. And this word carries a very, very rich meaning that includes faith, trust, reliability and trustworthiness.

When piestis describes God, it speaks of his absolute reliability and unchanging nature.

And when the Holy Spirit produces pistis in believers, it creates the Same quality of dependability in the ancient world.

I keep saying ancient like, well, it was back then, y'.

All.

But when this word was a thing, and it probably still is in Greek, in Greece, but when this word was used more commonly, pistis was essential for things like commerce, relationships, and in society.

A person of pistis was someone whose word held a lot of weight and whose promises actually meant something.

Their character was usually consistent.

When you dealt with a person of pistis, you knew what to expect.

And what the Bible say, tell us.

Let your yes mean yes and your no mean no.

Their yes meant yes and their no meant no.

And the Holy Spirit produces this same quality in us, making us a people whose presence brings stability, whose word can be trusted, and whose commitments endure beyond initial enthusiasm.

This is God's own nature manifesting in human lives.

And I do know quite a few people like that.

I am blessed.

I am blessed.

I do know quite a few people that are faithful and embody these characteristics.

So faithfulness begins with God's character.

The Bible declares over and over again that God is faithful, that he keeps his promises, his love remains constant.

He does what he says he will do, and his faithfulness does not depend on our faithfulness.

And this is where the biggest differences begin to come into play.

His faithfulness does not depend on our faithfulness.

He is faithful because that's who he is.

He remains true to his word regardless of our response.

Lamentations 3:22, 23 says, through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed because his compassions fail not they are new every morning.

Great is your faithfulness.

God's faithfulness appears fresh every single day.

Morning after morning.

His mercies arrive on time, his compassions remain available, and his promises are still true.

When the Holy Spirit produces faithfulness in us, we begin to mirror this aspect of God's nature.

Biblical faithfulness is visible in our actions over time.

It's keeping promises even when it costs us something.

Staying committed to relationships when they require effort and continuing to do what we said we would do, even when no one is watching or acknowledging our efforts.

The Holy Spirit produces faithfulness by connecting us to God's own faithful nature.

The Spirit gives us endurance for long obedience in the same direction.

Faithfulness requires staying power.

Yes, yes, yes.

Faithfulness requires staying power.

I'm going to need all the other fruit to go ahead and walk this one out.

The ability to continue doing the right thing when quick results don't appear.

The Spirit provides supernatural endurance that goes way beyond our natural capacity for consistency.

The Spirit also reminds us of our commitments when our feelings would lead us to quit.

Human feelings are notoriously unreliable, which I'm sure you all can relate.

We feel enthusiastic at the beginning of our commitments and discouraged when challenges arise.

Was that you, Lord?

That did I hear you?

And did you did?

The Spirit keeps our yes before us, even when emotions suggest we should walk away.

The Spirit also produces faithfulness by keeping us connected to God's greater purposes.

When we understand that our small acts of faithfulness serve his larger plan, we find meaning in consistency, showing up matters, y', all, keeping our word matters, and staying committed matters because God works through our faithful presence.

Jesus talked clearly about the importance of faithfulness in small matters.

And he who was unjust in what is least is also unjust in much.

Small faithfulness matters a lot.

Showing up where you're supposed to show up consistently demonstrates respect for not only ourselves, but for God.

And keeping small promises builds trust.

Many people want significant opportunities while neglecting the ordinary responsibilities that are right in front of them.

And that goes back to what Jesus said.

He who is faithful in what is least is also faithful in much.

So we can't ask God to give us these big grandiose ideas or these big grandiose things when and I'll just use my own life, he told me a while ago, I need you to plan your day.

Begin to write out what you are going to do, begin to write out the time you're going to do it, you know.

And he had to keep telling me that.

I do it now with no problem.

But now I see why I would have never made it to where I am now if I did not stop and do what he said to recognize the gaps in time.

He was showing me, you can do more things if you pencil it in.

If you write it down, you will remember it and you will do it.

Faithfulness in small things means finishing what you start.

The Holy Spirit teaches us that great faithfulness begins in obscure places.

The person who can be trusted with small tasks becomes someone who can be entrusted with larger responsibilities.

The Holy Spirit also enables faithfulness in our relationships.

Faithful love stays present through all seasons, not just the exciting beginning stages or the comfortable stable times, but through conflict, disappointment, and ordinary daily life.

And shout out to my faithful friends, my faithful spouses, my faithful siblings, my my faithful people out there, because it is difficult to remain faithful when everything else is going hard.

But again, I know quite a few people that are super faithful and I commend you for that.

Faithful relationships does not mean that you have to accept abuse or you're enabling any kind of destructive behavior.

Healthy boundaries can coexist with faithful commitments, but you remain faithful to someone's best good while refusing to participate in their harmful patterns.

The Spirit gives us power to love faithfully when our natural love runs dry.

He provides patience for long term relationships.

He creates commitment that outlasts feelings.

He produces loyalty that honors God and blesses others.

God gives each person gifts, abilities and purposes to steward faithfulness means using what God has given us consistently for his glory and others good.

And this requires long term we are playing the long game.

Long term commitment to developing our gifts and serving in the areas where God has placed us.

The Spirit produces faithfulness in calling by helping us resist comparison with others.

When we compare our gifts or assignments with someone else's, we often become discouraged or prideful.

The Spirit keeps our focus on the work God has given us to do.

Faithful stewardship of calling means showing up to do the work God has assigned even when progress seems slow.

Notice I said seems slow because in God, when you are doing what he has asked you to do, whether you see the progress or not, he is a living spirit, moving, living, breathing spirit so you're not stuck and you're not stagnant.

You're not still even when it looks like means continuing to use your gift when no one applauds you and serving in your area of calling whether or not you receive recognition.

Many people abandon their calling when they don't see quick results or when difficulties arise.

They start projects with enthusiasm and quit when the work gets hard and switch directions frequently, always looking for something more exciting or rewarding.

And this pattern prevents the growth that comes from long term faithfulness in one direction.

The Holy Spirit gives us stamina for the long work of calling.

He provides fresh grace for repetitive tasks and he renews our sense of purpose when we grow weary.

He reminds us that our faithful presence matters to God regardless of visible results.

Biblical faithfulness is tested most severely when circumstances become difficult.

Anybody can be faithful and committed when life is going great.

True faithfulness shows itself when continuing requires sacrifice, when staying there is going to cost you something and when keeping your word becomes extremely inconvenient.

Job demonstrated this kind of tested faithfulness.

He lost his wealth, his children, and his health all in rapid succession.

His wife told him to curse God and die.

His friends accused him of hidden sin.

Yet Job declared, though he slay me, yet will I trust Him.

Job's faithfulness remains constant even when his circumstances suggested that God had abandoned him.

His circumstances, his wife, his friends, looked like God abandoned him.

But Job knew that God did not abandon him.

He did not necessarily understand what was happening, but he knew the Lord was faithful, which is why he did not curse God.

The Holy Spirit enables this kind of tested faithfulness.

When life brings unexpected loss or difficulties that seem to last forever, the Spirit provides strength to continue trusting God.

Faithfulness through difficulty looks like continuing to do what is right when wrong seems easier.

Staying honest when dishonesty would give immediate results, and treating others with love when bitterness would feel justified.

This kind of faithfulness often remains unseen by others.

But you know who does see it?

It's God.

Many people that we see that have been elevated and that have been raised up to whatever platform God has given them, whatever grace God has on on their life, you better believe they did not fail the small test of faithfulness, the humble beginnings.

They did not fail this test right here.

And just like with all the other fruits that we've talked about, we cannot produce this kind of faithfulness on our own.

It requires the Spirit of the living God to do it.

Authentic faithfulness flows from experiencing God's unwavering faithfulness toward us.

When we know that God remains committed to us regardless of our failures, we we become able to offer that same commitment to others.

First Corinthians 1:9 declares, God is faithful by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

God's faithfulness called us into relationship with Jesus.

His faithfulness maintains that relationship, not ours.

His faithfulness will complete what he began in you.

So we will move on to this week's Scripture Spotlight, which comes from First Corinthians 4:2.

And it says, Moreover, it is required in stewards that one be found faithful.

Moreover, it is required in stewards that one be found faithful.

This verse reveals a lot of things about what God values most.

So stewardship.

Paul is discussing stewards, and these are people entrusted with someone else's resources or responsibilities.

Notice I said someone else's.

So if they're your resources, who would that someone else be that.

That.

Who would the someone else be that entrusted you with those resources?

Every believer is a steward of what God has given them.

Our time, abilities, resources, relationships, opportunity.

We manage what belongs to God.

And there's a requirement here.

God requires one thing above all else from his stewards.

Faithfulness.

Not brilliance, not perfection, not spectacular results.

Even he said faithfulness.

God values steady, reliable obedience over flashy achievements.

It says be found faithful.

The phrase be found suggests examination or evaluation of some type.

God is looking for faithfulness when he assesses our lives.

He searches for consistency, reliability, and long term obedience.

This verse contains no complicated instructions or impossible standards.

The requirement is straightforward.

Be faithful with what you've been given.

Keep your word, stay committed, show up consistently, do what you said you would do.

And let's talk about the accessibility.

Faithfulness is available to everyone, regardless of ability, resources or opportunities.

The person with few talents can be just as faithful as the person with many talents.

Faithfulness is a democrat, accessible to all, valued equally by God Being found faithful implies a pattern over time rather than a momentary action.

God looks for the trajectory of our lives, the direction that we're heading, the consistency that we keep, and the commitments that we keep across seasons and circumstances.

This verse reminds us that God's evaluation system differs dramatically from human systems.

God values faithfulness, obedience that may go unnoticed by others, but is precious to Him.

So we will move on to this week's Pause Prompts and remember.

Pause Prompts is just a way to take inventory of where we are so that we can know where we need to be.

No judgment, no condemnation.

Ever.

So let's go.

Pause Prompt number one.

Where in your life has God demonstrated His faithfulness to you?

Take time to remember specific things.

In what area of your life do you struggle most with consistency?

Who depends on your faithfulness?

What small commitments have you been neglecting, if any?

And how might renewed faithfulness in small things prepare you for larger opportunities?

Are you currently in a season of fateful waiting?

What has God asked you to trust him for, while visible progress seems absent?

Think about it.

Let's think about it.

All right, we will move on to our, say, Locke Corner.

This is our opportunity to receive the Holy Spirit's power for faithfulness and to give him our inconsistencies in exchange for his strength.

So you can begin by sitting comfortably and taking a few deep breaths.

With each exhale, release any shame about past failures to find.

Follow through on commitments and with each inhale, invite the Holy Spirit's faithful nature to fill you.

Bring to mind specific ways that God has been faithful to you and let this gratitude for his faithfulness settle in your heart.

Honestly acknowledge the areas where you struggle with consistency.

Don't minimize these struggles.

Bring them openly to God.

Ask the Holy Spirit to produce his faithful nature in you.

He will walk you through, step by step, even the smallest hat.

I know he will because he did it for me.

Ask for His Strength to remain obedient in the long term, his power to keep your word even when circumstances change.

Let us pray.

Father, in the name of Jesus, thank you for your unwavering faithfulness to us.

We thank you that your love doesn't change based on our behavior, and we thank you that your promises remain true regardless of our faithfulness.

Thank you for keeping your word even when we have broken ours.

Holy Spirit, we need your help with faithfulness.

We have started things with much enthusiasm and if we haven't quit already, when difficulties have come up, we want to.

We have made promises and failed to keep them and we have been unreliable in relationships, sometimes inconsistent in our calling and wavering in our commitments.

Produce in us your faithful nature.

Help us to become people whose word means something, whose presence can be counted on and whose commitments are firm through changing circumstances.

Give us faithfulness in small things.

Help us to keep our word in everyday matters.

Teach us to finish with what we start.

Show us that small faithfulness prepares us for larger responsibilities in our relationships.

Help us stay present through all seasons.

Give us patience for long term commitment and help us love faithfully even when feelings fluctuate.

Make us a steady source of security for those who depend on us, our children, spouses, friends, communities, our church and our nation in our calling.

Help us continue using the gifts you've given us even when progress seems slow.

Give us endurance, Holy Spirit, for the long work you've assigned.

Help us resist comparison with others and to stay focused on what you've asked us to do this day.

Provide fresh grace for repetitive tasks and renewed purpose where we've grown weary in seasons of waiting.

Sustain our faithful obedience, Lord.

Help us trust your timing when it differs from ours.

Give us hope when visible progress seems absent and remind us that our faithfulness during periods of waiting matters to you.

Help us to receive your faithful love for us so that we can offer that same commitment to others.

Free us from trying to earn your commitment, Lord, through our good behavior.

Teach us to rest in your unchanging nature.

Make our faithfulness a source of stability for others.

Let our reliability create safety that allows people around us to flourish and help our consistent presence reflect your faithful love.

Use our faithful lives to bring glory to your name and let our obedience, consistency and long term commitment demonstrate your character to the world.

It is in Jesus faithful name that we pray and it is so.

All right y', all, that is it.

Thank you for listening to living the Selah life.

If this moment stirred something in your spirit, please do share it with someone who needs to be reminded to pause and to listen.

You can connect with me on Instagram, my Facebook group or YouTube Living the Selah Life or email me your story, your testimony or a Selah moment that you would like to hear on the podcast.

I would love to see it.

You can email me at livingtheselaliferoton me that's Living the Selah Life at P R O T O N Me.

Until next time, Remember that God is speaking.

He wants to guide you and direct you and give you wisdom for your life.

Create space to listen.

Be patient with yourself as you learn and trust that the same God who has been faithful to you in the past remains faithful today.

May you go from this place rested, carrying the awareness that his presence is always near.

May you be rooted in the unshakable word of God, the Logos that ground you and the rhema that guides you.

May you keep rising into the life that he designed for you, into purpose, into peace, into the fullness of his calling.

May your life become a living Selah, an intentional pause that reveals his presence in Jesus name.

And it is so.

Selah.

Sam.