God is Good, All the Time
How often do you tell someone how thankful you are for them? It is often much easier to be critical or cynical of people and situations happening around us in the world today. Sometimes we can even feel entitled, like we deserve certain things that we don’t have.
Even though things don’t always go the way we expect them to in life, God’s Word teaches us that there is always something to be grateful for. God has given us everything good that we have—even the very breath that we take is a gift from God.
Most importantly, Jesus gave His life for us on the cross so that we might have eternal life with Him. The gift of faith and hope in Jesus should lead us toward gratitude and thankfulness toward God.
The writer of Psalm 107 encourages us to give thanks to God always, because there is never a time when God isn’t good towards us. Even in the midst of hard times and difficult seasons of life, God is still good. In fact, Romans 8:28 tells us that God is working behind the scenes to work everything for His good.
The Psalmist also tells us that we should be grateful and give thanks to God because His love endures forever. There will never be a time in your life that God doesn’t love you.
Even when we make mistakes, the love of God still continues.
In Romans 8:38-39, Paul says that there is nothing that can separate us from God’s love. God’s love and goodness endures forever.
We should seek to be the most grateful people on the planet, because the love of God will never end. So take some time today to tell God what you’re grateful for. It may be something simple like sunshine, nature, or a specific person. Creating a daily habit of giving thanks to God is an important step in our spiritual growth.
Keep the Faith
In the book of 2 Timothy, we find Paul writing a letter to Timothy, a fellow missionary. Many Bible scholars believe that this was the last letter Paul wrote before his death and that he wrote it from a Roman prison cell. Reflecting on his own life and believing that his death is coming soon, Paul writes that powerful passage:
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
2 Timothy 4:7 NIV
Faithful.
Paul was faithful to God and, without end, God was faithful to Paul. Shipwrecked. Stoned. Abandoned by friends. Imprisoned. The list of what Paul suffered goes on and on. But he persevered. He remained steadfast in his devotion to Christ.
When you think about your life, what do you want to be able to say at the end? What will you see when you look back?
In Paul, we see an example of what it is to cling to faith in Christ. He knew what it was to be dependent on God for everything. He drew strength from God because he could not do it...