I am in awe of the goodness of God! When I think about the wife and children I’ve been blessed with, I can’t help but thank God. When I think about the family I’m surrounded with, I can’t help but thank God. When I think about the people he’s brought into my life through the years, I can’t help but thank God. Even when I think about the difficult times and how He brought me out a better person afterwards, I can’t help but thank God. Most importantly, when I think of how He has blessed me even when I felt I didn’t deserve it, I can’t help but thank God. I have to follow Psalms 107:8 (NLT) when it says, “Let them praise the Lord for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them.”
I am reading a 30 day devotional by Carol McLeod of Just Joy Ministries titled, “Refined – Finding Joy In The Midst Of The Fire.” One of the lessons talked about the goodness of God. Following is a section from that lesson that really spoke to me. She said, “I can assure you, if God was only good to those who deserve it, neither you nor I would be able to receive from the storehouse that holds God’s kind and generous goodness. You and I should be extremely grateful that receiving God’s goodness is not based upon merit or performance. God’s goodness is based on who He is and not upon who you or I have chosen to be.”
Wow, think about that for a moment. The blessings that God has for us are given because of who He is and His love for us, not because of something we’ve done. To me that right there shows God’s love for us. Because if receiving God’s blessings was based on you and I being sinless and perfect, like He is, we would surely all fail. God loves you and I so much that even in our broken and sinful state He still wants to bless us. As it says in Psalms 145:9 (NLT), “The Lord is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.”
To this day I have moments where I reflect back on all the ways the Lord has blessed me. The ultimate blessing is even being alive to sit here and write this blog. Every day we get on this earth to be with our family and loved ones is a blessing. To be able to wake up and have another day to be who God calls us to be is a blessing and a gift. But I think many times we take that gift for granted. We wake up every day and go through the daily routine never once thinking how blessed we are to be alive. Not realizing it’s the goodness of our God that woke us up that day.
Many of you are going through pain right now and life is difficult. There is so much negativity you’re focusing on that you can’t see the blessings God has given you. Even through the tough times God is still there to bless you. There is no trial or tribulation the goodness of God can’t pull you out of. Reflect on the words in Nahum 1:7 (NLT), “The lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him.” Reflect on the things he’s already blessed you with as you’re going through the tough times. My friends, please know He has many more blessings in store for you because of His goodness.
Truth in Love! ~ Chuck