My husband and I have been married for over 25 years. After a long stressful day, there is a beautiful feeling that comes over me the minute I walk up the steps to our home. No matter what other people think of me, inside I know his arms will hold me close and I will be able to relax knowing he loves me just as I am. I don’t need to be anything else.

That feeling did not emerge out of thin air though. It came through years of going through both wonderful and very challenging situations together. It was refined and strengthened as we faithfully supported each other. That faithfulness is what has created a strong, supportive environment for love to grow in our marriage.

Faithfulness is mentioned 68 times in the Bible. Most of these refer to God’s faithfulness to us in conjunction with his love. Together these two qualities permeate all that God does and is. His faithfulness is described as deep and rich, saturating all of who he is, as a way of expressing the depths of his unconditional love for us.

His faithfulness is so strong that the Bible says it is his very character in Psalms 86:15 “But you, O Lord, are a God of compassion and mercy, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.” but perhaps even more interesting is how the Bible talks about Jesus in relation to faithfulness in John 1:17 “For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ.”

Jesus’ life and death was a living example of how deep God’s love and faithfulness actually is. He has gone to great lengths to show you how loved you are, how faithful he is, and how far he will go to save and protect you. It is no wonder that God asks for us to be faithful to him and to other people…but it is not for the reasons you may think.

We can often think of the fruit of the Spirit as things we have to do for others but they each have a profound impact on us as well. God knows the incredible depths of love and relationship that come out of faithfulness and he wants you to be able to fully experience it also. Although he sacrificed his son and encountered the worst of humanity, he still puts enormous value on faithfulness and love. That is because faithfulness creates the perfect environment for deep and lasting love.

If you struggle with faithfulness, you are not alone. As a human race, we are not fabulous at it but God has a solution. “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Galatians 5:22-23

Today if you are struggling with faithfulness, ask for God’s Holy Spirit to help you become more faithful and then begin practicing it. As you do, you too will begin to experience the benefits of faithfulness and one of them, that feeling of knowing you are loved…just as you are.