God Is Good
“God is great, God is good. Let us thank Him for our food.”
Maybe the secret to surviving tough things in life is hidden in the middle of this children’s blessing. God is good.
I recently had a little health scare. It seems little today, but it was pretty big a couple of days ago. I’d known something was going on for a couple of weeks, but had kept it to myself to keep from alarming everybody in the midst of the family Christmas.
So I’m talking to God.
A lot.
I reminded Him of my frustration in praying so hard for a friend (one of the most sold-out servants of the poor I know) who is in excruciating pain all the time. I and (literally) a thousand others prayed every day for 30 days for this man’s chronic pain to get better. Nothing (seemingly) changed. I walked away from that experience thinking “God, you are God. You’re going to do what you’re going to do. I know you love us. I’m just going with that!”
“So why pray?” I asked the other day.
“It’s how I change YOU” He said.
I’d heard that before. “Prayer changes things”, but I’d also heard “Prayer changes me.” I’m thinking…“I don’t want me to be changed. I’m not talking to God about me…I want this situation changed…I want this outcome changed.” (notice how many times I just used “I”. hint! hint!)
Then I realized just what a miracle it was when He changed me, or at least started the process. Reaching down into the human mind & heart and changing it is no less supernatural than curing a cancer, or opening a blocked artery, or making a disease go away.
But I still wasn’t peaceful. I still couldn’t understand what my problem was with prayer.
So I asked Him “Lord, what am I missing here?”
And as best I know His voice, here’s what He said…
“You’re wanting to decide what’s good. That’s not your place. I am good. And I know what good looks like. You only see what you see. I see it all. Trust me. I love you. I am good. That’s all you need to know.”
…and from that moment, I’ve had “the peace that surpasses all understanding.”
Not too long ago, a friend of my wife lost her 19 year-old son. He died suddenly from a brain aneurism. She was devastated. When they went into his dorm room at college the next day, his screensaver glowed with these words….
“God is good, and that’s all we need to know.”
Question: Can you rest in the sufficiency of God’s goodness?
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Responses (2)
Oh wow Regi. That’s real meat here.
I know there have been times in my life when I’ve questioned “Why pray? God, you already know what I’m going to ask for.” and you explained perfectly why we need to continue to pray. Thanks for sharing this today.
Thank you Regi for the insightful reminder that prayer is a two-way street. I thought those feelings of frustration were over unanswered prayer, but more likely, it’s frustration over another missed opportunity to draw closer to God because I’ve neglected to be a good listener.