Always Faithful

A while ago, my dad was doing some research into our family’s history and origins, which he then passed on to my siblings and me. He added an image of our surname’s coat of arms, which includes the motto “Fidelissimus semper”—Latin for “always faithful.”

I like the sound of that. I wonder where that motto originated, and whose story inspired it. God’s Word has a lot of good to say about faithfulness, “A faithful man will abound with blessings,” to start with.

It would be nice to be thought of as “always faithful,” and of course, to “abound with blessings”—but unfortunately, when the going gets tough, adversity sets in, doubts arise, or results don’t materialize as quickly as we would like, it’s sometimes easier to be fickle than faithful. Being someone whose love or loyalty can truly be counted on does not come as naturally as we’d like. As King Solomon observed, “Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, but who can find a faithful man?”

Thankfully, however, although we all will sometimes fail to be faithful, we can always count on God. Psalm 100:5 says, “The Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations,” while Deuteronomy 32:4 gives a beautiful description of God’s timeless constancy: “He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong!”

Even though we may fail and lose faith in Him or others or ourselves, He never gives up, and He never wavers from the promises He’s made. “I know the plans I have in mind for you, declares the Lord; they are plans for peace, not disaster, to give you a future filled with hope.”
He is truly “always faithful.”

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Proverbs 28:20 ESV / A faithful man will abound with blessings,
but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.

Proverbs 20:6 ESV / Many a man proclaims his own steadfast love,
but a faithful man who can find?

Jeremiah 29:11 ESV / For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.