7 Steps to Aid You while Looking for the Goodness of God
Instead of me having to force myself to focus on the goodness of God, I long to be “the person” who sees it everywhere. Do you know what I mean? I want to wake up to the renewed glory awaiting my presence. The Word tells us that God’s mercy and joy are made new every morning, so I long to wake up already abiding in it. Psalms 19 says, “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of his hands. DAY TO DAY pours out speech. And NIGHT TO NIGHT reveals knowledge.” Creation holds every splendor of who God is. Creation, creates. It sustains. It provides. It nourishes. It displays beauty. Creation has its own peace and it also moves with force. Everything within creation flows together to benefit another part of itself. There is no denying the beauty and majesty creation holds!
Creation is just one way we can see and experience the Goodness of God.
So, number 1 is Abiding & Acknowledging Creation
The 2nd way is the MOST IMPORTANT way to see God’s Goodness is to know God’s character.
This requires you to read the Word by really digging in. Creation may be God’s “general revelation” but the Word is His “specific revelation.” You will not know the character of God without knowing what the Word says about who He is. Revelation comes when you read the Word for yourself. A pastor’s job is to help lead you through your journey on the narrow road – you still have to create the relationship yourself.
3rd – Seek and Know what God has promised!
Life can be full of great disappointments and situations that easily convince us that God has forsaken us and withheld great and mighty things from us. Life has a way of causing us to blame all our hardships on God because we feel that we are undeserving. We tend to forget Jesus said, we would have suffering in this life. But the promise is God’s abiding presence within us. Jesus promised that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come. Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature can separate us from His love. This is such a profound truth and display of His goodness towards us. It is vital to know God’s promises concerning us so that when life lands a blow meant to take you out, you remember God’s promises concerning you – they are what cause you to stand, remaining steadfast and steady.
4th – Be An Active Part of the Body (listen and learn from others)
We read in 1 Corinthians that the church is the Body of Christ. It is vital to our spiritual walk to be connected with other believers. It helps hold us accountable and encourages us on deep levels. When we hear and see the goodness God poured out on our brothers and sisters – it ignites the embers already within us. People need the goodness God has placed inside of you, just as you need theirs. We will all forever be learning how to become the image of Christ. We are meant to pursue the heart of God together, encouraging one another and lifting one another up in prayer. So be an active part of the body.
5th – Know the Difference Between God’s Good Discipline and Failures
Hebrews 12:7-8 “It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.”
God does not tempt you. Satan is the one who tempts because he wants us to fail. God tests us. Think of it like this: you’re an athlete, preparing for a big event. You’ve crushed the numbers so far, doing better than you ever have. But the coach just came up to you and changed up the time and the number of challenges. The coach isn’t setting you up to fail. The coach knows you can achieve more and has set up a test he knows you can crush with a new level of endurance and discipline. Just like the coach, God is going to help you and guide you throughout the race of life.
God is also going to call us out on our sin. This doesn’t mean he rains down his wrath and every bad thing we can count in our lives is his doing. That is not the heart of God. Our sin is the cause of our downfalls. Our sins are what cause us to suffer. The fact that we live in a fallen world means there will be hardships but none of it can rule out the goodness of God. The heart of God is repentance and mercy.
6th – Label Your Life Correctly
Everything good within your life is a gift from heaven. The Father of Lights has freely given you every good thing you obtain in your life. This includes hope, joy, peace, kindness, and happiness. How you persevere through trials and deal with situations has come from His leading hands. Your skills, gifts, and endurance – yep. It is all from Him. All of it is His grace and mercy and love concerning you. John 3:27 says, “John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.”
Boom!!! Heaven!!!!
7th – Find Refuge in Psalms
This has to be one of my favorite points. “Finding Refuge in Psalms!”
I like to call it the “BUT, GOD! Method.”
When reading through Psalms we see the heart of David. We see how God ordained Him as King when he was but a child. We see the strength and favor of heaven displayed throughout his entire life. BUT we also see how those he loved turned against him and how death always seemed to be nipping at his heels. The beautiful, extraordinary part about David is that through all his trials (and there were many), he opens up his prayers with all of his emotions and feelings on full display before the Father. BUT every single time, before David ends his prayers, He proclaims the truth of who God is.
It is ok to have emotions, they are gifts from the Father BUT it is MEGA important to remind yourself of God’s character and truth towards you and concerning your life. Life is going to have struggles, but God is ever constant, and never does He withhold himself from those He loves.
You are someone He unconditionally loves!