Last week we were introduced to the phrase "faithful love", the Hebrew word, 'hesed', and here it is again ... over and over. Line after line, event after event, the same line reminds us "His faithful love endures forever". That undying, unchanging, faithful love is the common thread that weaves through each event, from the dark and tragic to the joyful and majestic.

We don't usually have an problems with pairing the various events with faithful love up until verse 10. It's jarring at best, confusing at worst, to see things like "He struck the firstborn of the Egyptians" and He "slaughtered famous kings" paired with a declaration of His faithful love. It's uncomfortable. But worship doesn't only thrive around cheerful parts of the the story. Worship is telling the truth about who God is, again and again and again. The God who judged wickedness with the flood is the same God who preserved it with mercy. The One who restrains evil is also the One who refuses to let love fail.

When we rightly understand judgment from a Holy and righteous God, we don't respond with denial or resentment, but with trust ... and ... with worship. Over and over again we rehearse this truth until it reshapes the very core of our being. We do it until even in the hardest of seasons we can say, "His faithful love endures forever."

Because it's true.

The scriptures exist to reveal the true nature and character of God. They reveal to us His attributes and personality ... even the ones that makes us uncomfortable. Perhaps those are the ones we must make the most effort to learn and understand.

Which parts of God’s story are hardest for you to include in worship? How might praising God for His enduring mercy reshape how you view judgment in your own life?

Father, help me, teach me to worship you with honesty and with trust. Help me to remember that Your mercy has never ever failed, especially when I don't understand what you are doing. I praise you for your faithful and enduring love, not only to me, but to all humanity. In Jesus name, Amen.