The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"So Good"
"We must establish the goodness of God within our hearts and minds as a foundational doctrinal principle. Upon this basis, we then expect the Holy Spirit will continually work to make personal the principle."
We occasionally sing the children's hymn "God Is So Good" in services. Written very simply in both musical and lyrical terms, the song nevertheless references a reality infinitely beyond all understanding.
"Oh how great is Thy goodness, which Thou hast laid up for them that fear Thee; which Thou hast wrought for them that trust in Thee before the sons of men!" (Psalm 31:19).
Forever will not exhaust the discovery of our Lord's goodness, that is, the sublime beauty of His character and nature. To say or to sing "God is so good" flows easily off the tongue and from the hearts of devoted believers. If, however, we perceive the reality as anything less than eternally beyond our complete comprehension, we err regarding most profound truth of God's existence, and of our own. His character and nature precedes all other facets of His glorious being. "Thou art good, and doest good" (Psalm 119:68). Who God is forever guides and motivates His every thought, attitude, word, and deed. The pristine purity of His moral being means that "doest good" ever proceeds from "art good." It (He) cannot be otherwise, nor do otherwise. "The Lord is righteous in all His ways, and holy in all His works" (Psalm 145:17).
We must make this truth personal in our own hearts, as it exists in God. Whatever this present moment holds in condition, circumstance, and situation, a Lord of goodness beyond every contemplation we can ponder holds it. And, holds us. Apply this wonder to the blessings of life, and we will remember that there is Someone to thank in all things. Apply the same wonder to the challenges of life, and we will realize there is Someone to trust in all things. Indeed, God is so good that we thank Him in the challenges no less than in the blessings because a Lord of infinite and eternal goodness will be as faithful to us in our pains as in our pleasures. "Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 5:20).
We must establish the goodness of God within our hearts and minds as a foundational doctrinal principle. Upon this basis, we then expect the Holy Spirit will continually work to make personal the principle. Indeed, it will not be long for the believer who walks with the Lord to become overwhelmed by a goodness, the depths of which cannot be plumbed, and the heights of which cannot be scanned. The longer he walks with God, the more he will understand why the Lord answered Moses' request to behold His glory by declaring, "I will make all My goodness pass before thee" (Exodus 33:18-19; emphasis added). Born again believers have set forth on voyage that will never end, and upon an ocean whose shores we will never reach. "God is so good." He is, and the full measure of "so" in this simple, but infinite expression of glory will never be known.
There is no end to the quest we know,
forever beckons on.
We soar in skies so bright and blue,
above all clouds of storm.
Yes, we fly into the heart of God
as in His Son we trust.
This present world will soon be nothing more
than long forgotten dust.
So spread your wings and catch the wind,
o journeyman of hope,
and race toward horizons blessed
with those who also know
That the quest of hearts is Jesus,
He is our shining sun.
It matters not how far we've come,
the journey's just begun.
"The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works."
(Psalm 145:9)
Weekly Memory Verse
Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord, He is God in Heaven above, and upon the earth beneath, there is none else.
(Deuteronomy 4:39)
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