Good

Good Friday

The seasons have changed here finally in the cold cold north with winter being swallowed up by warm southern breezes; there is great change for good. As a follower of Christ, I love the parallel of winter’s hardship and spring’s goodness compared to Christ’s suffering and death on Good Friday and his resurrection and joy celebrated on Easter Sunday. Good Friday was a good day in that a good God, brought a finality of payment for our evil and sins; all of this leading to our ability to experience the power of good, and to share that good with others. 

Goodness in People

The little boy in M. Night Shyamalan’s Sixth Sense made this phrase famous; “I see dead people,” with his supernatural sixth sense. On my Road in Retirement, I have too have a spiritual ability that has opened my eyes to see “goodness” in people. Suffering will do this to us. As stated in other blogs, I’ve had a lot of goodness extended to me on my road, in loud and large demonstrations and in soft and subtle displays.

Source of All Good

The source of any and all goodness has to be God, because as the scriptures say in several places, that left to ourselves, none of us can really live good lives. God is the all greatest “good” and when we recognize the origin of goodness in and around us, we need to embrace the source and be transformed in our hearts by the giver of the good, and then we too can do good! When I am doubting God’s goodness I retreat to the Psalms to soak in his immense goodness: 

•    "I trust in your unfailing love . . . for he has been good to me. Ps. 13:5-6

•    "The Lord bestows favor  . . .  no good thing does he withhold from the blameless." Ps. 84:11

•    "You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you. Ps. 86:5

•    "The LORD is good; his love endures forever; his faithfulness through all generations. Ps. 100:5 

•    "Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. Psalms 118:1

Let's pursue this good God for a couple minutes more. 

Loud and Large Good

When I was flat on my back in May two years ago, unable to get up, eat, drink, speak, or express anything facially for days, I couldn’t fathom that today could be so good. I didn’t believe then that I would be able to walk with help, sometimes whisper full sentences, eat my sisters unbelievably thick and delicious sourdough toast, and order Spring capris on my phone with the help of a care giver (unbeknownst to Chris). That was a loud and large “good” done to me by God. 

Soft and Subtle Good

On the flip side, there have been numerous softer and more subtle deeds of good, like the help from a care worker and my sister to don my living room with its Spring clothing aka décor.  Here are some other “good” things that have gone down in my life recently; thinking of James 1:17 that says "anything good and perfect is a gift from above, coming down from the Father.”

• Tuesday morning lady’s coffee—spiritual fellowship. Good.

• Contributed my heart leadings in a March-April church devotional. Good.

• Received a couple personal notes of gratitude for that devo. Good.

• The diligent support of my husband Chris. Good.

• Thoughts of travel to Ashville. Extra-good.

• Conversation with my two sons. Good (triply good if in person).

• Hope for better speech via therapy and possible technology. Hope always = good.

Celebrating Good

A really cool 2000-year-old exchange between Jesus and some random Judean guy included a question, probably a gotcha question, about whether there was one good thing anyone could do, one good, to receive eternal life. Wow! One thing. And Jesus gives an answer about keeping all the commandments and such, but he really answers the question with seven words: “There is only One who is good.” He points the man to the person, God, not to the process. Doing good deeds, yes, that’s important, but we must connect to the source of all good, to truly experience the unbelievable power of good. So let’s look to God and do good. No “yeah, buts.” 

Too Far Gone for Good

If anyone thinks they are too far gone to receive any goodness from God, or that they are too far an unbeliever to think God has never been good to them; to these I would deliver two messages and the first is from God himself: “If we, then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to our children, how much more will the Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him (Matthew 7:11)!” So, ask God to reveal his goodness to you! And the second message is from King David: “The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made (Psalms 145:8-9 ).” God is good to all, including you, so take some time on this upcoming Good Friday, April 18, 2025 and recognize the goodness of God.