In his giant battle with Goliath, David won with a single stone. Yet before the battle, he gathered “five smooth stones” (1 Samuel 17:40). Was it a lack of faith to gather more than one stone? Nope, being equipped with enough good ammo enables us to win any battle! Are you equipped for your spiritual battles with the most important weapons, the “divine weapons of our warfare”? (2 Corinthians 10:4). Consider part one of a series on five major keys for victory in any battle.
God’s Goodness Toward Us
There is much to be said about God, yet arguably the most important is that He’s good! If He’s not good, well, what would that even look like? What is your “concept of God”? The great news is that we can enjoy God’s goodness toward us NOW, as Psalms 27:13 says, “in the land of the living!” We experience His goodness by soaking in His “hesed,” the Hebrew word for His lovingkindness or goodness. Here’s how:
1) Enjoy His Goodness in creation!
Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. – James 1:17
Imagine radiant rainbows, jaw-dropping sunsets, towering redwoods, fields full of flowers, The Grand Canyon, a tasty home-cooked meal, the vastness of the stars, the marvel of the seasons, the wonder of a newborn baby, your dog or your cat. As we list everything good about our lives, remember it’s ALL from Him! Seriously, try it now, or whenever you’re feeling low, make a list of everything good in your life and offer thanks to Him Who is the author of it all! Thank You, Lord!
2) Enjoy His Goodness in His Person!
“Taste and see that the Lord is good.” – Psalm 34:8
God is love and love is good. No one comes close to caring about you like He does! The best human love you’ll ever receive does not compare to the amount of love He has for you. So take the most rewarding “taste test” ever – and turn to Him with an open heart, asking Him to show you His goodness. He never lets us down, even in the storms of life! Taste, you’ll see.
3) Enjoy His Goodness in sending His Son!
He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? – Romans 8:32
He gave His perfect Son, His very best possession, over to death in our place to demonstrate His love and goodness. This is all we really need to know about the goodness of God – Jesus’ death paves the way to forgiveness and our eternal salvation! Our Romans verse implies the rest of our needs are covered because this “down payment” was so valuable. He promises to “freely gives us all things”! This truth about Him got me through “the dark nights of the soul” during my fight with a “terminal case” of Stage IV metastatic melanoma cancer in 2003. Have you taken the first step toward Him to receive His free gift of eternal life in His Son, Jesus?
4) Enjoy His Goodness in giving blessings to the unrighteous!
“For He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” – Matthew 5:45
Often humans are only good to those who are good to them, but not God, He is good to even the unrighteous! Apart from Christ, we’re all unrighteous and don’t deserve even one good thing from God, so it’s a “good” thing that God is very generous to all, sending the essential blessings of rain and sunshine, upon all. He will provide for us during a cancer battle, and yes even a worldwide shutdown to slow a virus! He’s not mad at you, He’s wanting to draw you to Himself and shower you with good.
5) Enjoy His Goodness in trumping bad circumstances!
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” – Romans 8:28
I don’t have to convince anyone that God allows considerable hardships in His Universe. Yet whatever He allows, He counters with a larger dose of temporal and eternal good from it! He even turns deliberate, even murderous evil for our good as Joseph says in Genesis 50:20. His brothers had left him to die in a pit, and then sold him into slavery, but God’s goodness reigned in the end. Joseph lead the entire region out of annihilation due to a massive famine! God overturns evil with good! He’s that good.
Lord, help us see past life’s hardships and focus on Your Goodness! We may not understand everything now but we trust Your heart as displayed through giving us Jesus to win us to you and save us from sin and eternal punishment. We worship you for Your Goodness!
Join Joe & Terri Fornear on his Facebook page LIVE TONIGHT, Thursday, April 2 as they discuss this key to victory!
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