God is great. God is good. Let us thank Him.
How many times was that said when our kids were small? I remember we thought it was important to teach them to pray using their own words instead of a "canned" prayer. I'm thinking we should have focused on believing the words of the prayer rather than changing them.
God is great. He can do anything. He is greater than the world. He is greater than me, greater than the weather, the economy, the bad guys, the government, my fears. He is able and capable. God is great.
When Jesus is about to do something harder than I will ever have to do - willingly give himself up to be crucified, He says to God, (Mark 14:36 in my words) "God, it is possible for you to do anything. You can change this situation, but not what I will, but what You will." God didn't change the hard thing, but in doing the hard thing, God used Jesus to make it possible for all of mankind to be saved. Oh, to trust God's ability to be in control of every situation and then for me to willingly do even the difficult so that I can be used to fulfill the purpose for which I was created.
God is good. He is good, and His definition of good is pure. He knows the big picture and can use anything for good, for my personal good, the good of my family and friends, the good of mankind, the good of the whole world. His idea of good is greater than mine. God is good.
Luke 5:17-26. Some men believed that Jesus could heal their paralyzed friend. Since they couldn't get to him, they lowered their friend down through the roof right in front of Jesus. The scripture says that Jesus, seeing their faith, tells the man that his sins are forgiven. Which is "gooder" - to have everlasting life for eternity, or to walk for a few years, to be spiritually healed or physically? Jesus knew what the man's real needs were and met them, but just to be show the people who He was and what He could do, He healed the man physically as well. The result was the men were astonished and proclaimed that they had seen remarkable things. God was glorified. If I believe that God is good, will I see the remarkable and be astonished?
Let us thank Him.Thank Him for my food for sure. Thank Him for the times He meets my needs, and that I have needs to be met. Thank Him for healing, physically, emotionally, spiritually. Thank Him that I have needs to be healed, that I can be astonished by how He does this. Let me thank Him.
Reading a book, One Thousand Gifts, by Ann Voskamp. She points out that when Jesus seemingly did not have enough - two fish and five loaves of bread to feed thousands - He gave thanks. Immediately, what He needed was multiplied. (John 6:11 says that the people had as much as they wanted. It was an all you can eat buffet. Let me thank Him and watch. At the minimum, I will notice what He is doing instead of taking things for granted.
So today, I pray, God is great. God is good. Let us thank Him. Will you join me?
