Give me a word, Lord: I KNOW THAT YOU ARE GOOD

I Chronicles 16:34 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.

Psalm 145:9 The Lord is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.

James 1:17 Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.

I was considering a word to share today, when Big Daddy Weave’s song, I Know That You Are Good, came on the radio. Several topics have been on my heart, but when I heard that song, it simply tied everything together and put a big bow right on top of my thoughts. Let me share the first verse and chorus with you: You don’t answer all my questions, but You hear me when I speak. You don’t keep my heart from breakin’, but when it does, You weep with me. You’re so close that I can feel You when I’ve lost the words to pray. And though my eyes have never seen You, I’ve seen enough to say: I know that You are good. I know that You are kind. I know that You are so much more than what I leave behind. I know that I am loved. I know that I am safe. ‘Cause even in the fire, to live is Christ, to die is gain. I know that You are good.

I know that God is good. I see evidence every single day. He has placed good people in my life, good people in my path, and His good undying love surrounds me day in and day out. One of my oldest friends is still battling COVID 19 in an intensive care unit on a ventilator. My friends and my church family have been praying for her daily. I was able to speak with her daughter yesterday, and I talked with her about how God is so good and that He is still working. She answered me saying, “He’s been working in mysterious ways.” I am quite sure that her response was dead on. Our God does work in mysterious ways. His ways are greater than ours. With this challenging illness, two of my other friends and I have drawn even closer together. We have been strengthening and encouraging one another through prayer, phone calls, and words of encouragement. Our good God placed those ladies in my life when we young children, and our friendship has continued to grow stronger through the years. As our faith in God grows, our relationships are strengthened. It is amazing to consider that God is so good that He knows exactly what people we need in our lives, and He provides those people when we are just little children! God hand picked my closest adult friends when I was just a kid! That blows my mind, Peeps!

As Big Daddy Weave sang this morning, I nodded in agreement with is words. God doesn’t always answer all of my questions, but I know that He hears me when I come to Him in prayer. God doesn’t always keep our hearts from breaking, but when our hearts do break, He weeps with us. And on those days that I don’t even have the words to speak in prayer, I feel His presence. I can quietly lean into Him because I know that He is there. I’ve never seen Him but I know Him! I know that He is good and kind, and He is so much better than everything I have left behind. I know that He loves me, and I know that I am safe in His arms. And I know that even though we may feel like we are in the fire, with Christ, even if we die, we gain everything.

Yes, my friends, we serve a very good God. I pray that if you are going through a struggle today, no matter what the situation may be, I pray that you place faith in the hands of our good, good God. Look around for those loving people that He has placed in your life to strengthen you and encourage you. Call out to the Father. Seek His presence. I pray that you know that He is good. Even in our darkest hour, even when the world is upside down, our good God is still at work doing mysterious things for our good and His glory. I know that He is good!