God is Good!

When I was a very small child, my parents taught me a simple prayer that I would repeat at meal times. I’m sure that some will recognize it. The prayer goes like this:

“God is good.
God is great.
Thank you for our food. Amen.”

God is good. Although simple, the claims of this prayer are profound and life-giving if we’ll ponder and trust them. But if we doubt or refuse these claims, we will never know goodness for we will not know God.

God is truly good. God does not merely measure up to some standard of goodness, he is the benchmark of goodness himself. We don’t assert that God is good in the sense that we evaluate whether he is good or not. For without God, we could not know good. Were it not for God, we would have no reference for goodness. “Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good.” (Psalm 135:3)

God is always good! In spite of how we treat God or others, God remains good. Though evil seems to rule and all hell breaks loose, God is still good. No matter how we feel today or tomorrow, God is always good. Regardless of our circumstances or condition, we can always come to God knowing that he is good. “The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.” (Psalm 145:9) 

God is thoroughly good! God possesses no dark side, no fickle moods, no capricious foolishness. He is good through and through. “God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5) He is utterly trustworthy, because he is thoroughly good. “Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.” (Psalm 34:8)

God is generously good! God doesn’t dole out goodness like a Scrooge! God loves to lavish us with his goodness. What do you or I own or enjoy that we have not received from his generous hand? To his people he says, “Open wide your mouth and I will fill it.” (Psalm 81:10) What an indictment against us if we come to him not expecting very much! “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11)

God is infinitely good! No matter how great our need we will never discover the limits of God’s goodness. One could sooner drink the ocean than exhaust God’s goodness! “For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” (Psalm 100:5)

“What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:31-32)

Heavenly Father, we come before you in humility and awe for you are truly good! Forgive us when we have seen you for less than what you are. We come to you and trust you daily. Thank you for the priceless, good gift of your Son, Jesus, who died in our place. Thank you for all the good things you lavish on us every day. We look to you with expectation, because you are infinitely good. Please make us good as you are good. Transform us and remove anything that is not good, for we want to express your goodness to others. Amen.

© 2009 Rob Fischer