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Heavenly
Minded
God
is Good
| 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. We must never
tolerate 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. --C. H. Spurgeon |
Isn't it comforting to know
that our all-powerful God is good? Most of today's scary movies
try to reach our deepest fears by presenting us with an uncontrollable
force whose sole purpose is our destruction. Feelings of helplessness
keep us on the edge of our seats. We don't know where or when to expect
the enemy, but he is out there stalking us. Goodness just doesn't seem
to be in vogue.
Thank the Lord, we have a God
who only wants good. He is our protector, our shield from the evil that
surrounds us. All that He does and thinks is good. If you feel secure in
His goodness, you should have no fear about the things that are going on
around you. Even when our circumstances feel bad, God has given us His
solemn promise that He will make good come out of it. One of the
first verses I memorized has continued to be a comfort to me throughout
the years, and I would like for you to read it:
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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
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When everything around us is
going well, we have a tendency to drift away from thoughts of
thankfulness. Before I was injured, my marriage fell apart, and my
career ended, I thought I could control my circumstances. I was very
proud of my accomplishments and worked very hard to achieve the American
dream. I had no need for God, and I resented anyone who thought I did.
When everything fell apart, I realized there was no way any human can
ensure continued success. My pain surrounded me physically and
emotionally, and I was a bitter, angry woman. How could God allow such
unhappiness, such sorrow???
The answer? I know it now. He
wanted me to know Him. All the good things He had provided in the past
were never credited to Him. I had turned my back on my true Provider,
and He knew that without Him, I would never experience the joy that is
only possible through Him. God stripped me of almost all that I held
dear in order for me to turn to Him for help. Little did I know that He
could give me a life much better than anything I could ever imagine. He
used pain as the vehicle to reveal this to me.
Today, I have a loving husband
who is my best friend in the world. Although our income is fixed, I've
never had so much! I could fill a book if I tried to list all of the
wonders I have seen and experienced since I became a child of God.
People may look at all of my health problems, and those of my husband,
and feel very sorry for us. They don't understand. We couldn't be
happier. Our God has blessed us with an inner joy that cannot be beat.
We have peace about the future, wonderful children, and four
lovely grandchildren. God is indeed good to those who love Him.
Have you ever looked
at the Bible to see all of the promises of God? They are too numerous to
count. He promises eternal life, forgiveness of all wrong doing,
mercy, His Spirit, answers to our prayer, wisdom, compassion, and
comfort to name a few. May you desire all that God has to offer you. Do
you want to experience His goodness today? Please visit How
You Can Be Saved right
now.
I encourage you to
read and meditate on the following verses. They speak about the
goodness of God. May you be moved to think about all of the good things
God has already done for you and the things He promises to do in the
future.
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But as for me,
the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my
refuge, That I may tell of all Thy works. --Psalm
73:28
For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord gives grace and
glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk
uprightly. --Psalm 84:11
And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is
good except God alone. --Mark 10:18
"You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with
the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing
good, and healing all who were oppressed by the devil; for God
was with Him. --Acts 10:38
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God
is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
--Romans 12:2
And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always
having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance
for every good deed;
--2 Corinthians 9:8
For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be
rejected, if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified
by means of the word of God and prayer.
--1 Timothy 4:4-5
Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one
who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God.
--3 John 1:11
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works,
that no one should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that
we should walk in them. --Ephesians 2:8-10
So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in
my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your
salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work
in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
--Philippians 2:12:13
All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching,
for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that
the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
--2 Timothy 3:16-17
Christ is the head of the church, which is his body. He is the
first of all who will rise from the dead, so he is first in
everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in
Christ, and by him God reconciled everything to himself. He made
peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of his
blood on the cross. This includes you who were once so far away
from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil
thoughts and actions, yet now he has brought you back as his
friends. He has done this through his death on the cross in his
own human body. As a result, he has brought you into the very
presence of God, and you are holy and blameless as you stand
before him without a single fault. But you must continue to
believe this truth and stand in it firmly. Don’t drift away
from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News.
The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul,
have been appointed by God to proclaim it. --Colossians
1:18-23
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