Fixed

“This is the covenant I will make with Israel, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

“Thus says the Lord,
who gives the sun for light by day
    and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
    the Lord of hosts is his name:
‘If this fixed order departs
    from before me, declares the Lord,
then shall the offspring of Israel cease
    from being a nation before me forever.’

“Thus says the Lord:
‘If the heavens above can be measured,
    and the foundations of the earth below can be explored,
then I will cast off all the offspring of Israel
    for all that they have done,
declares the Lord.’” Jeremiah 31:33-37

“Forever, O Lord, your word
    is firmly fixed in the heavens.” Psalm 119:89

God’s fixed word and order are the foundation of fixed hope. His promises are pledged in sure conviction, His will is fixed in eternal purpose. His Word is as dependable as His arranged course of day and night, tides and moon phases, blooms and seasons. The order of creation and His creatures’ fruitfulness testify to the Lord’s divine imagination, unchanging nature, and constancy. (Genesis 8:22; Job 14:5; Psalm 74:16-17; 90:1; Isaiah 14:24; Jeremiah 33:25-26)

When we come to know Jesus, He plants in us His Spirit, fixing our eternal security. He draws us into His ordered plan of time and space to know and glorify Him. As we daily seek Him in His word for insight, inspiration, and direction, He empowers us to do His will. (John 15:5; Acts 17:25-27)

How firmly fixed in God’s word are my priorities? How do my time, work, and service reflect His divine order? How will I secure anew my identity, purpose, and hope in Him? Fixed in Christ, hope is certain.

“God, all nature sings Thy glory, and Thy works proclaim Thy might;
Ordered vastness in the heavens, ordered course of day and night;
Beauty in the changing seasons, beauty in the storming sea;
All the changing moods of nature praise the changeless Trinity. 

Clearer still we see Thy hand in man whom Thou hast made for Thee;
Ruler of creation’s glory, image of Thy majesty.
Music, art, the fruitful garden, all the labor of his days,
Are the calling of his Maker to the harvest feast of praise. 

But our sins have spoiled Thine image; nature, conscience only serve
As unceasing, grim reminders of the wrath which we deserve.
Yet Thy grace and saving mercy in Thy Word of truth revealed
Claim the praise of all who know Thee, in the blood of Jesus sealed. 

God of glory, power, mercy, all creation praises Thee;
We, Thy creatures, would adore Thee now and through eternity.
Saved to magnify Thy goodness, grant us strength to do Thy will;
With our acts as with our voices Thy commandments to fulfill.” ~ David Clowney (1970)

Father, fix my energy, efforts, and affection on You, so my life exemplifies Your faithfulness and extols Your glory.