The Rhythm of Faith
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Introduction
Introduction
Imagine standing at the edge of the ocean. The waves roll in and out with a steady rhythm, unceasing and timeless. Each wave may look different—some gentle, some crashing, some barely noticeable—but the rhythm of the ocean remains constant.
Faith works much the same way.
It ebbs and flows in life, responding to the tides of our circumstances.
In calm seasons, faith feels like a gentle ripple—easy and soothing.
In stormy seasons, it may feel overwhelming, like powerful waves crashing over you.
1. Financial Uncertainty
• Imagine someone facing a sudden job loss amidst rising living costs in 2025. Bills are piling up, and the future seems overwhelming. The “waves” of worry and fear crash over them. Faith in this moment means trusting God’s provision, taking small steps to seek opportunities, and leaning into prayer and community support. Like the ocean’s rhythm, God’s faithfulness sustains them, even when their circumstances feel out of control.
2. Health Crisis
• A person battling a chronic illness or waiting for a critical surgery faces relentless waves of physical pain, uncertainty, and emotional exhaustion. Faith in this stormy season is holding on to hope—trusting God for healing, strength, and peace, even when the outcome is unclear. It means focusing on each “wave” as it comes, trusting that the rhythm of God’s care will carry them through.
3. Climate Challenges
• In 2025, extreme weather events and climate-related crises continue to disrupt lives globally. A family displaced by a hurricane feels like they are drowning in fear, loss, and uncertainty. Faith here is leaning on God for resilience and trusting that He will provide safety, resources, and a path forward, even when the storm seems endless.
4. Relational Struggles
• A person experiencing the end of a long-term relationship or a family conflict might feel like they’re being hit by wave after wave of pain, confusion, and heartbreak. Faith in this season means trusting that God will restore their sense of peace and identity. The rhythm of prayer, reflection, and leaning on supportive relationships can remind them that the storm won’t last forever.
5. Global Instability
• In times of global political tension or societal unrest, individuals may feel overwhelmed by fear for the future. The uncertainty feels like crashing waves with no clear resolution. Faith here is trusting in God’s sovereignty, praying for peace, and continuing to work toward justice and reconciliation, confident that God’s purpose remains steady even in turbulent times.
We have to learn to go with the flow by faith whether the waves are calm or steady, the highs and the lows, the in’s and the outs…
The rhythm of the ocean teaches us to trust, adapt, and move in harmony with the unending faithfulness of God.
Yet, beneath it all, the rhythm of faith needs to remain steady, just like the ocean’s rhythm, reminding you that God’s presence and promises are unchanging.
Before we get to Chapter 3 in Lamentations, This is something unique about this book....The majority of this book is laid out very neatly in an acrostic pattern each starting with a Hebrew letter of the alphabet....
Chapter 1, Chapter 2 and Chapter 4 - 22 verses in an Acrostic format what is an acrostic format?
Acrostic is .....a poem, word puzzle, or other composition in which certain letters in each line form a word or words.
Chapter 5 is the only Chapter not in this format....but is written in 22 verses
Chapter 3 is in Acrostic Format consisting of 66 verses in sets of three
Question.....Why is this book so neatly put together when everything is falling apart?
John Piper says it best ( Paraphrase) Our pain is bounded neatly together like the literary borders of this book with pain flowing like a river .....
A river has direction and is moving somewhere..There is a purpose for the pains in life....there is a goal , a target.......
There are two targets in the Rhythm of faith this morning…
Point 1: Faith in Suffering
16 He has made my teeth grind on gravel, and made me cower in ashes;
17 my soul is bereft of peace; I have forgotten what happiness is;
18 so I say, “My endurance has perished; so has my hope from the Lord.”
Vav- 6th letter of the Hebrew Alphabet
It is when we view our suffering as meaningless—without purpose—that we are tempted to despair.
R. C. Sproul
When we go through suffering, its real, and we can speak truth to it. We don’t have to be fake about it…God gives us permission to be honest about our suffering in our lives.
Jeremiah is suffering along with the nation ….The nation is suffering, his preacher is suffering...
• Affliction Under God’s Rod (v.1-2): Jeremiah feels personally afflicted and attributes his suffering to God’s discipline. He feels as though he is walking in darkness rather than light.
• Physical and Emotional Pain (v.3-4): Jeremiah describes his body and spirit as broken, worn down by God’s hand and years of hardship.
• Imprisonment and Isolation (v.5-7): He feels surrounded by bitterness and hardship, likening his suffering to being trapped or imprisoned, with no escape.
• Unanswered Prayers (v.8): Jeremiah laments that his cries for help seem to go unheard, as though God has blocked his prayers.
• Loss of Direction (v.9): He feels as if his path has been made crooked and obstructed by God, leaving him disoriented and lost.
• Feeling Attacked by God (v.10-13): Jeremiah uses vivid imagery, describing God as a bear or lion lying in wait to attack, and as an archer shooting arrows at him.
• Bitterness and Humiliation (v.14-15): He feels mocked by others and overwhelmed with bitterness, as though he is being forced to drink gall.
• Loss of Peace and Prosperity (v.16-17): Jeremiah feels as though peace and happiness have been stripped from his life, leaving him in despair.
• Despair and Hopelessness (v.18): He expresses a deep loss of hope, believing that his strength and expectation of the Lord’s faithfulness are gone.
Jeremiah begins by describing his suffering in vivid detail. He feels broken, surrounded by darkness, and even cut off from God. Yet, what stands out is that he prays through his pain. Faith doesn’t deny suffering but presses into God in the midst of it. When life feels heavy and God seems distant, faith calls us to cry out honestly, trusting that God hears.
Timothy Keller- dispels the illusion that we have the strength and competence to rule our own lives and save ourselves. People “become nothing through suffering” so that they can be filled with God and his grace.
17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,
18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
We might suffer physically, politically, economically, but even when your life is out of order, tell God the truth. Tell him your disappointments, failures, the moments where you feel like you’ve lost hope.The worst thing you can do is say nothing. Have a little talk with Jesus
Now let us have a little talk with Jesus
Let us tell Him all about our troubles
He will hear our faintest cry
And He will answer by and by
… And when you feel a little prayer wheel turnin'
And you will know a little fire is burnin'
You will find a little talk with Jesus makes it right
Point 2:The heart of faith
Zayin Lamentations 3:19-21
19 Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall!
20 My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me.
21 But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:
In verse 18 Jeremiah has lost all hope, but How should we respond in times like these? Some believe this is a prayer..
15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
In this prayer, v19-20, Jeremiah is using anthropomorphic language in asking God to remember His suffering…
7 “Remember that my life is a breath; my eye will never again see good.
In verse 21, the tone shifts: “Yet this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope.”
In Hebrew, the word לֵב (lev) does mean “heart,” but in biblical usage, it often encompasses both emotional and intellectual aspects—essentially what we might call the “mind” or the “inner self.” So, when the Bible talks about the lev, it’s addressing thoughts, will, emotions, and intentions all wrapped into one.
The preacher has a change of heart /mind…Many of us suffer from a defeated mindset, were still stuck in our suffering, but we need to listen to the words of En vougue and Free your mind and the rest will follow…
prov 23.7
7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; But his heart is not with thee.
Jeremiah heart and mind shifted from no hope to hope…
From bitterness to Confidence
From Resignation to Expectation
From Destruction to Deliverance
From Mourning to Mercy
22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.”
Jeremiah remembers God’s unchanging character. He declares that God’s steadfast love, mercies, and faithfulness are new every morning. Faith doesn’t ignore reality; it remembers who God is. In hardship, faith declares that the Lord is good to those who seek Him.
We can go with the flow in the Rythym of Faith because
Conclusion: El Emunah – The Faithful God
9 Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations,
As we conclude, let us hold onto God’s name, El Emunah, which means “The Faithful God.”
His faithfulness is unchanging, enduring, and victorious.
When we are weak, El Emunah remains strong.
When we falter, His steadfast love carries us.
Faith in suffering and faith in His promises lead us to the victory only He can provide.
El Emunah, thank you for your faithfulness to me. Thank you for the many times I’ve seen you show up in my life when I didn’t know how I was going to pay the bills, how I would ever be healed, or how I would find relational peace in the midst of chaos and conflict.
Thank you for being faithful time and time again to the words you have placed in my heart and to your promises in Scripture.
Whatever you face today, remember: great is His faithfulness, for He is El Emunah, the Faithful God who never fails.
Let’s trust in Him and walk in the rhythm of faith. Amen.
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