My Personal God: My Steadfast Love

by David Chadwick

The eternal God of the universe wants to be your close, intimate, and personal friend. As a hiding place, a shield, and a rock, he has been on a rescue mission for all of time to save the world from the curse of sin.

God loves the world (John 3:16) and wants everyone to experience his steadfast love and his loving kindness (Psalm 144:2). The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases (Lamentations 3:22-23).

The Hebrew word for steadfast love is “hesed.” It is a love based on covenant commitment, not a contract. God’s “hesed” love is a love that is loyal and faithful. It never ends. Even when we fail and flee, God is faithful to persist in love and pursue us to return to Him. Since he made the covenant, he will always honor it.

Exodus 34:6-7 uses the word “hesed” and says, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast “hesed” for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin… to the third and the fourth generation.”

For a moment, picture a rushing river that flows relentlessly no matter what. If you were to dam it up, it would find a way to keep flowing. Obstacles and barriers would not be able to stop its flow. This is how God’s steadfast love is toward you. A never-ending love that keeps flowing. It never gives up.

Have you had an encounter with the steadfast love of a personal God? If not, today is the day to ask God to show you his steadfast love. Pray with me today: “Daddy, thank you for the gift of your steadfast love. Your loving kindness is meant to transform me. Thank you for the cross. It is big enough to cover all my sins. Your love endures forever.”

Enjoy the steadfast love of a personal God. It is a love that is extended to all generations and never runs out!

My Personal God: My Shield

by David Chadwick

In this world, there are really only two religions: either you are saved by grace or you are saved by your good works. Christianity is the only world religion with a personal God who left the splendor of heaven to radically pursue a love relationship with this broken world.

You have a loving Daddy who wants to be your light and salvation. He also wants to be your shield. When you are surrounded by enemies, he wants you to turn to him for protection. King David did this on a regular basis. He recognized God was his ultimate protector and knew God personally as his “shield” (Psalm 18:2).

A soldier uses a shield to protect the entire body from attack. A shield is a defensive weapon that guards the body from harm and destruction.

In the New Testament, Paul describes the supernatural armor God has given his followers. One of the pieces of armor is the “shield of faith.” Why would we need a shield of faith? Because a strong faith protects us from the enemy’s flaming arrows. A Roman shield in that day would cover the entire human body. No arrow from the enemy could pierce the shield.

Even when “bad” things happen, God promises to use everything for good (Genesis 50:20, Romans 8:28). He is a restorer of the brokenhearted and he promises to bring beauty from ashes (Isaiah 61:3).

Do you know God as your personal shield? Say to him today, “Daddy, thank you for being my protector. My defender. My shield of faith. Though I may not always see the enemy’s arrows coming toward me, I am confident that you protect me. You are always able to see what I cannot see and you promise that no weapon formed against me will prosper (Isaiah 54:17).”

Seek to know the God of creation as your personal shield. You have no reason to ever be afraid.

My Personal God: My Heritage

by David Chadwick

The eternal God of the universe wants to be your close, personal friend. He wants to be your light. Your salvation. Your hiding place. He desires to have a personal relationship with you.

Did you know that the testimonies you collect because of God’s personal and sovereign guidance over your life is your heritage?

King David wrote in Psalm 119:111, “Your testimonies are my heritage forever, for they are the joy of my heart.”

Biblically speaking, “heritage” is the legacy passed down from one generation through the next because of a covenant or birthright.

The Bible is full of stories where God moves on behalf of his people. These collective testimonies of God’s faithfulness become our heritage. The heartbeat of our personal God is to establish the heritage of his faithfulness in our lives: times when his angel armies protected you, times when he supernaturally provided for you, moments where his sovereign hand made a way in an otherwise impossible situation.

These “God stories” become our heritage as we form memories about his faithfulness to each one of us. As we remember how God came through for us, we become encouraged to believe that he will come through for us again and again. They are stories that we can pass on to our kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids until Jesus returns. That is a great example of Godly heritage.

Give thanks today to your personal God by saying to him, “Daddy, I am thankful to know that my heritage comes from you. Help me to use my testimony to encourage others in my life with stories of how you have changed me, sustained me, and provided for me over and over. You came through for me once and you can do it again!"

In a world that so easily forgets, may we remember God’s heritage in our lives!