God is Still Good

God is good! No matter what we are facing, He IS good (Psa 103:8). That is hard sometimes to grasp because the world can be a treacherous place and bad things happen to threaten our happiness and comfort. We tend to think of anything that makes us unhappy or sad as bad. But if we think about our lives, there are always things that cause great pain at the same time as things involving great joy (thanks Pastor Craig).

I recently lost someone who has been like an aunt to me most of my life and I will miss her dearly, but at the same time I just celebrated my mom's birthday. The fact that I am suffering this loss doesn’t make God any less good. If fact, the fact that I am grieving speaks to the love that I felt. When I consider the experience, I wouldn't wish away the years I had with her to prevent the pain of losing her. 

I recently heard the story of Katherine Wolf (thanks Desperate for Jesus), who provides some interesting perspective around suffering well. And finding joy in what we do Have, not what we don't.  This speaks to learning to be content regardless of our circumstances.  Even when it's painful or we have circumstances we can to choose to be joyful. The scriptures tell us to rejoice in all things (1 Thes 5:16-17; Phil 4:4). We have to remember He is working all things together for the good of those who love Him (Rom 8:28). He cannot lie (Tit 1:2), which means he is trustworthy. He does what He says He will do.

This is a clear reminder that God IS good.....not because we deserve it, but because that is who He is. We can trust Him! 

Are you selfish?

If someone asked you, “Are you selfish?”, how would you respond? I like to think I’m not very selfish and when I really take a look at myself, I have to admit I’m very selfish about somethings in my life. My time is one of those things. I love “me” time and I guard it like a sentry at Buckingham Palace. Some would say, there’s nothing wrong with that. And I would normally agree, but I will guard my time to the expense of what God may be calling me to do. 

We are called to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength; and then to love our neighbor as ourselves (Mark 12:30-31). And I find that I may be lacking there. I know, I’m not perfect and I will make mistakes or sin. But I thought I was further along than I am, until I did a bit of self-reflection. I realized that sometimes I “love” God when it is convenient for me or when my priorities are met. I found that sometimes I lose sight of the fact God created me for His glory and not the other way around. 

I sometimes put my own stuff ahead of His calling on my life. For example, I sometimes find myself playing video games, when I should be spending time with Him. Does that sound like a big thing? Not necessarily, but at the end of the day, that is me putting my own desires ahead of Him. I’m not saying He never wants us to have downtime or play time or whatever we need to be rested and able to pour out to whoever He brings our way. But I am saying, our motives matter. If the only one I’m concerned about is myself (which I’ve found is sometimes the case), I’m operating in an incorrect posture because we should be seeking the good of others (1 Cor 10:24). I know that’s hard because we live in a society that teaches us the opposite (Thanks Pastor Craig) – it’s all about us. But it’s not – it’s all about Him. 

To be clear, God does not want us to overdo it. He wants us to rest in Him – He will give us rest (Matt 11:28-30; Psa 127:2). He wants us to be healthy – our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19-20). He wants us to be ready to pour out or serve others – when we love others, God lives in us (1 John 4:12). In my selfishness, I don’t always make the best decisions for myself. Just like everyone, I want to do what I want to do and that doesn’t always line up with God’s expectations and directions to me. I have to remember that the old me was crucified with Christ and now Christ lives in me (Gal 2:20).

So, I’m dealing with myself on what I am “loving” more than God and what I’m going to do about it. It’s definitely a process and I’m starting with time and then I’m moving to the next area. I invite you to join me. Think about the area(s) of your life, where you are putting your own desires and stuff ahead of God and his purpose for you, then take it to him to help you with it. You are not alone (Deut 31:6). We all have at least a little bit of selfishness and need the power of the Holy Spirit to help us.

The Cost of Sin

We were born in sin (Psa 51:5). All of us have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23). God created us in His image but we exchange our understanding for His. That is sin – anything contrary to His nature. Ever since The Fall (Gen 3), we have been looking at God through the lenses of our own faithlessness. We don’t surrender to Him because we don’t really believe He is faithful and will provide for us. Somewhere along the way, we really began to believe that we were providing for ourselves. That if God didn’t come through, we could use our gifts and talents to take care of ourselves. We forgot that the Word is true – we can do nothing without Him (John 15:5). 

Have you ever imagined what sin really costed us? It costed us separation from God (Isa 59:2). Beyond the consequences that come with sin. it costed us our image. We were created in God’s image – set apart from everything else on earth, but sin took that away from us. It costed us our innocence. How many animals have died since creation to give us clothes to wear and cover our nakedness? How much has greed and love for money costed us? How much has selfishness costed us? How many lives have been lost to envy and hate and fear? How many have suffered because we were dependent upon ourselves for our livelihood and not dependent upon God to provide?

I wrote before that we don’t obey God because we don’t really trust Him. So, what did you give up on because you didn’t believe God could provide for you outside of your works? God is a provider and He owns the cattle on a thousand hills – he can keep you fed. What did you tell God “no” to because you didn’t really believe He would come through? God is a promise keeper. If He calls you to something, He provides a way to accomplish it, even when you can’t see it. Where was he sending you that you didn’t go, because you didn’t believe He would prepare the way before you? God goes before us to prepare the way. What are you not trusting God with because in actuality you don’t trust Him to take care of you? God takes care of His own and cares about what we care about. 

At the heart, sin is the result of our lack of faith in God (Psa 37:3-5). That is the root of it all. God is GOOD to us. We may not like the outcome, but I would bet if you look back over your life in Christ, you can point to the things that brought you closer to God and it won’t be the easy things. It’s the things that stretch and cause us pain that make us stronger (Rom 5:3-5). God uses them to build our character and our faith, showing us that He is our source, our redeemer, our protector, our everything. He also uses them to remind us that this is all temporary. We are not meant to stay here. We are visitors and He is coming back to take us home with Him – to the place that He is preparing. 

In the meantime, it is important for us to remember, Jesus suffered and died. We will suffer, too. We are not exempt from pain and problems. They will come, but He will be with us and deliver us (Psa 34:19).