Aids to Optimism – Part Three

“For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.” Psalm 100: 5

“God is good…”  He always is. Things aren’t always good, but God is. Complexity consequences when we fail to distinguish between God and things. As a result, we often end up feeling it is God Who isn’t good.

Water is always wet.

Fire is always hot.

God is always good.

Those are basic unchanging characteristics of each. Things aren’t always good, but God is. Don’t confuse the two.

In Richmond, Virginia a woman named Mary Green God sued David A. Hurt. The cases were posted as God verses Hurt. Spiritually that is our God versus our hurt. He still opposes our hurt as He did on Calvary.

 “…His mercy is everlasting….” 

Grace is God supplying the good we don’t deserve. The good.

Mercy is God sparing us what we do deserve. The bad.

His mercy is everlasting.

If given a box of sand and told there were particles of iron filings in it, you might search for them with your eyes and fumble for them with clumsy fingers without finding them. However, if you were to sweep through the sand with a magnet the almost invisible particles would be drawn to the magnet by the power of the magnet’s force field. 

An unthankful heart, like our clumsy fingers in the sand, may discover no mercies. Let a thankful heart sweep through a day and as the magnet finds iron, so in every day you will find heavenly blessings. His mercy is everlasting.

“…His truth endures to all generations….”

In a culture that professes its foundation to be relativism, He offers stability. Many in our society profess there are no absolutes, everything is relative, insecurity.  As a result pessimism abounds.

To such perplexed people God offers truth that endures. As there are rules that remain constant once a sporting game has begun, so there are spiritual concepts that don’t change in the game of life. Game on!

The Bible repeatedly presents goodness as a core quality of our Lord. It is His very unchanging nature. Therefore, “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. (I Chronicles 16:34) It is just Him.

“No one is good but One, that is, God.” (Mark 10:18) Daily our experiences confirm both aspects of that.

Walk with Him and you can say with the Psalmist, “Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness.” (Psalm 107:8-9) Trust Him, try Him, prove Him. Do it and you will become more optimistic.