God Lives and is Good

If we truly look at God's world and the things He does in our world, we know that God lives and is good.  Such were the sentiments expressed by a pastor who preached in our church a couple weeks ago.  Sometimes we get so bogged down with trials and challenges that we lose sight of the infinite goodnesss of God. We sometimes miss or take for granted His wonders and gifts all around us. 

Do we ever stop to contemplate the wonders of His creation: the sun and moon and stars?  Do we thank Him for the beauty of a sunrise and sunset and for the provision of rain and the pure white snow to water the earth?  Do we thank Him for the flowers in thier season?  Do we think about our ability to breathe and the functioning of our bodily organs?  Do we stand in awe of all God's daily provinces to us?  

I think of a child who so often becomes so animated and excited, as he or she discovers new things in God's creation.  Psalm 8:1-3a says, "Oh Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!  You have set Your glory above the heavens.  From the lips of children and infants You have ordained praise."   We also as adults need to delight in these gifts that God gives us.  More importantly we need to delight in Him who gives us these gifts to enjoy.  We also need to throw away or at least not make so important the worthless and unimportant things in our lives.  God must be supreme in our lives, and He must be our chief delight.   

God is good when He shows His wonders and care for us in creation and in His daily blessings for us. Psalm 8:4 says, "what is man that You care for him, that you are mindful of him?"  As humans we are but specks in the vastness of God's universe.  Yet God delights in us and cares for us.  In fact, He created us to show His glorious purpose of showing His unlimited and awesome care for us.

If God is so good what will He not do for us?  He not only gives us daily blessings, but He gave His Son, Jesus, as a sacrifice for sin.  If we are a child of God, we now live by grace and faith alone and not by our polluted works.  Will He also not then ultimately deliver us from this world of woe and trouble?  He promises us that He will do that very thing!  He promises us that He is preparing a place for us right now in His Heavenly kingdom!

All these blessings should never be taken for granted.  God refuses to be worshipped abstractly.  He wants to be worshipped personally and with love.  God never wants Himself or His blessings to be taken for granted.  Thinking about God and all His blessings should cause us to be patient in adversity, thankful in the blessings, and confident about the future.  It should also make us repentent of relying on anything but the Lord for our security and guidence.