November 21, 2024

God’s Goodness

November 19, 2015 by

seekingHimthanksgivinggraphic

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever.
Psalms 136:1-3

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This repeated refrain ‘His love endures forever‘ teaches us that God’s love is the foundation for all His actions on our behalf and the fountainhead of all our thanksgiving.  His love includes His mercy,  His faithfulness, and His kindness.  God, by His nature, is good.  We are seeing His love always.  He sent His Son to die for us (John 3:16).  All for His love for us—the love that endures forever.

The Lord loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of His unfailing love.
Psalm 33:5

Being full of His unfailing love means not ever reaching a point of lack in all aspects of life because He is giving Himself fully to us.  It is only  when we realize this kind of love and meditate on this kind of love that we appreciate how deep the Father’s love is for us, how incredibly vast beyond measure.

Our God loves us with all His heart.  Let us reciprocate by loving Him,  too, with our inner being.  Let us not live a life that displeases Him but rather a life that is set on pleasing Him.

Some people depend on chariots, substituting other gods for the One True God.  Remember God is the only One who is good.

“Why do you ask Me about what is good?” Jesus replied.
“There is only One who is good.
If you want to enter life, obey the commandments.
Matthew 19:17

I just love how He loves us all! Even those that are living in sin He still loves them because He created them.  However there is judgement to them that are not in Christ Jesus. And those that are in Christ Jesus they testify of His love that endures forever for they shall not be judged and so the joys shall never cease.

Therefore let us choose, brethren, to live a life that pleases the Lord. We should love Him for He first loved us.  We should also exercise the same love and goodness to others for we are created in His own image and likeliness.  There has to be no difference.

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Father, we give You all the praise and all the glory for You are the great God, the ‘I AM who I AM,’ the all-knowing and always present God, the Creator of the heavens and the earth.  The earth is full of Your lovingkindness, dear Lord, and so we worship You.  Heavenly father, thank You for showing us Your goodness and mercy that endures forever in Your Scripture.  We love You and adore You; and thank You for the love that is given to us.  We pray for forgiveness for at times we have taken Your love for granted.  Teach us to appreciate Your love more and more.  And to love others and do good to them.  We adore You and give You thanks; in Jesus’ name we have prayed. Amen.

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Fear of the Lord

July 22, 2015 by

SeekingHimLogo

How great is Your goodness,
which You have stored up for those who fear You,
which You have wrought for those
who take refuge in You…
Psalm 31:19

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What is it to ‘fear the Lord’?  Fear normally has a negative connotation to it.  We think of someone who may be ‘paralyzed with fear’.  But this is not what the psalmist is speaking of here.

God gave His people rules and laws when they came out of Egypt.  Why?  Because for over 400 years they were not able to think for themselves.  They had lived and functioned in a pagan land filled with idols and artificial gods.  Those who did remember God’s promises had to really protect themselves from the influence of the pagan culture.

When we study the Old Testament teachings about the Hebrew people, we often think, “Why were they so stubborn?”  Couldn’t they see what they are doing by not obeying Moses and Aaron? Why did Aaron build the golden calf when he knew Moses was on the mountain with God?  The reason?—they were human and did not have the same type of relationship with God as Moses had.  As they continued to walk with Moses they did learn more of God’s character, but still chose not to trust Him. We, today, still have similar choices to make.

As we walk with God and study His Word, we are inviting wisdom and knowledge to come in.  We are saying that we want more than just a casual relationship with God.  We want to become invested in His Will for our lives.  It’s like with your friends—you talk to them and get to know who they are and what their likes and dislikes are.  So when we chose to not to make time for God, we are saying He is not important.

We must strive to cultivate an attitude of respect. Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.”  The first-century church (shown to us in the Book of Acts) practiced the fear of the Lord.  

So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria
had peace and was being built up.
And walking in the fear of the Lord
and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.
Acts 9:31

The early Church chose to focus on what was good in their lives and keep up their community by seeking daily to bless others and be God’s best.

We can walk in this way as well.  When we are coming into a state of turmoil, we can choose to walk in God’s goodness by following His Will in our lives.

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Let’s pray:  Father, I come humbly before You, thanking You for Your goodness.  Give me a heart to seek after You and Your Word and be a light to others.  Help me not to become distracted and to remain focused on You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

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God’s Goodness

July 20, 2015 by

SeekingHimLogo

How great is Your goodness,
which You have stored up for those who fear You,
which You bestow in the sight of men
on those who take refuge in You.
Psalm 31:19

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The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10, Psalm 111:10).  There are so many blessings and so much goodness that follows the true children of God—the ones who really fear Him and do His Will always.

Let me just show you a few verses in the Bible that show the goodness of God.

• Psalm 25:8  Good and upright is the Lord therefore He instructs sinners in His ways.
• Psalm 33:5   The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of His unfailing love.
• Psalm 34:8   Taste and see that the Lord is good, blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him.
• Psalm 119:68   You are good and what You do is good, teach me your decrees.
• Psalm 145:7  They will celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of Your righteousness.
• Matthew 19:17  “Why do you ask Me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

The above Scriptures speak to us in many ways, showing us the ways of the goodness of the Lord.  David asked, “What is man that God should be mindful of him?” (Psalm 8:4).  It is by His grace and His lovingkindness to put in store all this goodness just for us.  The beneficiaries of His goodness are you and I—as long as we do His will and walk in His statutes.  God created us in His own image and own likeliness.  We need to be like our Father for us to enjoy the fruits of the land.  God’s goodness is immeasurable. The grace of God takes us to that level where we are able to receive this goodness.

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Let us pray: Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Your holy name.  King of glory, I worship You.  May Your goodness continue to shower on us.  May we experience the abundance of Your goodness in due time.  Give us the heart to fear You, Lord, and to do Your commandments.  We need You each and every day in our lives.  Holy Spirit, help us in our prayers.  In Jesus’ name, I pray.  Amen.

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Young and Old

September 30, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

I will come with the mighty deeds of the Lord God;
I will make mention of Your righteousness, Yours alone.
O God, You have taught me from my youth,
And I still declare Your wondrous deeds.
And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me,
Until I declare Your strength to this generation,
Your power to all who are to come.
For Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the heavens,
You who have done great things;
O God, who is like You?
You who have shown me many troubles and distresses
Will revive me again,
And will bring me up again from the depths of the earth.
May You increase my greatness
And turn to comfort me.
Psalms 71:16-21

I just turned 30 this past week.  I know I’m far from old and gray, but I’m also not considered “young” anymore.  (Just ask my kids).  It was an important milestone for me and, apparently, 30 makes you a real adult.  When I read the words, “You have taught me from my youth,” I thought back on the past 30 years.  I was amazed by how much He has taught me over these years; some lessons I needed to learn more than once….  But it is much more than just what He has taught me over the years.

It is the time He has invested in me and the love shown to me.  It is His strength, His wonderous deeds, His greatness.  It is His desire to revive and comfort me again…and again…and again.  At 30 I find myself married with 3 busy kids, working full time, going to school full time—and needing a lot of reviving and comfort.  He does this daily, and sometimes all I can say is “O God, who is like You?”

Today I find myself thanking Him for His greatness and provision in my life.  I find myself repeating the words of David, “Lord don’t forsake me in my old age….” I want to spread His goodness.  I want to show this next generation that, without Him, I could not do what I do.

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Let’s pray: Dear Heavenly Father, the things You do for me it’s more than amazing!  Thank You for teaching us in our youth, and for not forsaking us in our adult years. Thank You for Your provision, for Your greatness, and for sustaining us as we share with the world what you do daily in our lives.  In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

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God’s Goodness

March 5, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

Praise the LORD.
Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His love endures forever.
Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the LORD or fully declare His praise?
Psalms 106:1-2

I love the Lord for His love endures forever. In verse 2 of Psalm 106, the psalmist had come to a point of failing to understand the manner of love the Lord has for His people.

Why all that love? It is because He is good.

The goodness of God endureth continually
Psalm 52:1

God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:5

The “goodness” of God refers to the perfection of His nature.  There is such an absolute perfection in God’s nature and being that nothing is wanting in it or defective in it; and nothing can be added to it to make it better.

He is originally good —good of Himself—which nothing else is; for all creatures are good only by participation and communication from God.  He is essentially good; not only good, but goodness itself.  The creature’s good is a super-added quality, but the goodness of God—it is His essence.  He is infinitely good; the creature’s good is but a little drop, but in God there is an infinite ocean or gathering together of good.  He is eternally and immutably good, for He cannot be less good than He is.

The goodness of God appeared most illustriously when He sent forth His Son “…made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might received the adoption of sons” (Galatians 4:4, 5). Then it was that multitude of the heavenly host praising their Maker and said, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good-will toward men” (Luke 2:14).

The goodness of God is the life of the believer’s trust. It is this excellency in God which most appeals to our hearts. Because His goodness endures forever, we ought never to be discouraged.

The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knoweth them that trust in Him.
Nahum 1:7

When others behave badly to us, it should only stir us up the more heartily to give thanks unto the Lord, because He is good.  And when we ourselves are conscious that we are far from being good, we should only the more reverently bless Him because He is good.  We must never tolerate even an instant’s unbelief as to the goodness of the Lord; whatever else may be questioned, this is absolutely certain—that Jehovah is good; His dispensations may vary, but His nature is always the same.

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Father, we thank You for Your goodness.  The love that You show us is so great that we always give You honor.  May You receive all the praise and honor in Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen!!

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Remembrance

September 16, 2013 by

SeekingHimLogoSome days I am disappointed with the present state of my life.  Left unchecked this emotion runs rampant through my mind and affects my interactions with others.  Negative is the word I would use to describe the veil that clouds my mind when I am disappointed.

When I am disappointed I always have two choices: to continue on the downward spiral or get refocused.  It’s important that I don’t dismiss this emotion, thinking it’ll just go away, because disappointment leads to discouragement and discouragement stops me dead in my tracks.

Let all that I am praise the Lord,
may I never forget the good things He does for me.
Psalm 103:2

What better way to refocus than with remembrance?!

The Lord has brought me through so many ill circumstances, working them in my favor and came to my defense more times than I can count.  The Lord has given me plenty to remember.  Plenty to hold on to.  I simply have to choose to remember…to praise His goodness.  Once I do this, I can easily remember that God has a plan for me!  He’s always had a plan.  What I see may be a mess, but given to God he can turn it into something magnificent.  And I pray I never forget this.

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Father, thank You for reminding me that any disappointment I face in this life—whether it be a specific event, an area of my life, or just life as a whole—that Your grace and goodness can drown out this emotion.  Thank You that if I will allow You, You can make sense of and redeem my circumstances.  You are the mighty Redeemer.  Help me to remember all of Your goodness when I am tempted to grab hold of disappointment and self-pity.  In Jesus’ name.

Amen.

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