“Our world is crazy.” I find myself saying that over and and over again. What is happening in our world? In our country? In our communities? And it just keeps happening. More frequently and more violently than before. It instantly fills me with fear. What kind of world is my son growing up in? How do I protect him? And that fear turns to anger – that someone could make me feel that way – could make our world, our community what it has become.
There’s no explanation. There’s no reasoning it out. There is just confusion. The only thing that brings me peace is remembering God. Remembering who He is. And He is good. Even now – God is good all the time. With so much hurt and so much evil, it’s hard to accept that God is good all the time. Some of the time? Yes, of course! But all the time?
Charles Spurgeon wrote: “God oftentimes withholds riches and honors, and health of body from men, though they walk ever so uprightly; we may therefore know that honors and riches and bodily strength, are none of God’s good things… The good things of God are chiefly peace of conscience and the joy in the Holy Ghost in this life; fruition of God’s presence, and vision of his blessed face in the next, and these good things God never… withholds from the godly.”
God’s goodness is expressed to us in His gifts of peace, joy, the Holy Spirit, His presence, and the promise of heaven. And those gifts cannot be taken away. They are not dependent upon on health or wealth or recognition. In fact, they are gifts that aid us during the opposite – during sickness, poverty, and struggles. And now, we are in one of those times of struggles. A time when we are hurting, afraid, and maybe even angry.
But we can be comforted with God’s peace. We can smile because our joy is of the Lord. We can be encouraged because He is with us. And we can have hope because we know heaven awaits us. Even now – God is good all the time.