If God is good......
Have you or someone you know posed the question, "IF GOD IS GOOD, THEN WHY....." You can fill in the blank. Me, I've been personally struggling with this question over the past 1 1/2 yrs due to various life events happening in my family.
Because I KNOW God is the answer and His words are written down for all humanity, I began looking there (Holy Bible) as well as praying and meditating about God and His word.
I've listed not all, but quite a few, Bible verses about who God is and what His character is like. If this doesn't help you, read the story at the end about the farmer and God being good.
Joshua 23:14 “And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one word has failed of all the good things that the LORD your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed.
2 Samuel 7:28 And now, O Lord GOD, you are God, and your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant.
Num 23:19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
2 CHRONICLES 17:26 And now, O LORD, you are God, and you have promised this good thing to your servant.
Prov 20:22 Do not say, “I will repay evil”; wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you.
Job 1:10 Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.
JEREMIAH 29: 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Heb 13:5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
LUKE 1:71 that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us;
Eph 6:13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.
These are a few of the verses telling us what type of person God is; His character and how He deals with us.
We can see that:*God keeps His promises regarding us and the promises He makes does not fail.*God does not lie or change His mind.*God puts a hedge of protection around His people, their family, and their belongings.*God also has a GOOD PLAN for our future and to give us hope.*God will not leave or forsake us.*God will take care of us when our enemies come at us.*No matter what happens in this world, Jesus has already settled everything for us to win.
All good things come from the Lord. So, what about bad things happening? I don't have a problem trying to understand why bad things happen; Jesus tells us we will have trouble in this world but we can have peace. (John 16:33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”)
In this world, we are in a war; (Eph 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.) God on one side working all things out for the Christian's good (Rom 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.) and satan on the other side trying to destroy us. (John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.)
Let's look at Romans 8:28 again. People misread this many times. The verse tells, “us all things work together for GOOD for those who are called according to his purpose.” I have no idea what my future is; health could be good or bad; money could be little or a lot; family & relationships could be good or broken. The one thing I KNOW in all cases, God is working all things out for my good.
There's a story about an old farmer who had lived all his life on the farm as his father before him. The farmer had a son, about 19 yrs old, who helped him and his wife on the farm. This seemed to be the year that finally a good crop would come in and the farmer would be able to break even and maybe have extra. Harvest time was closing in and in about a month, all the crops would be in, sold, and the farmer could pay off every debt he owed. His neighbors came over and were as happy as he was and said “WHAT GOOD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
That night, the farmer, his wife, and son all went to sleep planning on how wonderful it would be to be all paid up with some to spare. In the wee hours of the morning, the farmer was awakened by horrible winds and rain. Looking out his window there was nothing he could do but watch and pray. “Dear Lord, You know we are counting on the crop to catch up on everything. Please help us.”
When the morning light broke over the horizon, the farmer went to check the crops. The corn was destroyed. Between the rain and the high winds, nothing was left to be salvaged. After looking over everything, the farmer went back into the house. Sitting at the table, he didn't understand why but what he did know was God. He told his wife and son what happened; in his usual way the farmer said, “I don't know how; I don't know when; I do know God will.” The neighbors came quickly and sadly saw the damage. “WHAT BAD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
His wife began to clean out the kitchen drawer of old mail when she found a letter about their insurance on the farm. Her first thought was “not another bill” as she opened it. The insurance policy had changed and now included coverage for crop damage. The farmer quickly phoned the company and true enough, his crop loss was covered. The insurance would pay $500 more than if he had sold the corn after harvest! The neighbors hearing this rushed over and said, “WHAT GOOD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
The son climbed the roof to repair the torn shingles. As he was repairing the shingles, his foot slipped on the wet roof and he fell to the ground breaking his leg. The doctor was called to set his leg. The neighbors hearing this rushed over and said, “WHAT BAD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
The farmer and his wife were busy the next few days filling out the insurance papers for the crops and the doctor. When they turned on the radio and heard that war had been declared; all men age 18 and older needed to report. The farmer's son didn't go because his leg had been broken and he was in a cast for several more weeks. The neighbors hearing this rushed over and said, “WHAT GOOD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
Truly, we see to the end of our nose, if that far. I choose to be like the farmer and KNOW GOD; I don't know how; I don't know when; I do know God will.
Because I KNOW God is the answer and His words are written down for all humanity, I began looking there (Holy Bible) as well as praying and meditating about God and His word.
I've listed not all, but quite a few, Bible verses about who God is and what His character is like. If this doesn't help you, read the story at the end about the farmer and God being good.
Joshua 23:14 “And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one word has failed of all the good things that the LORD your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed.
2 Samuel 7:28 And now, O Lord GOD, you are God, and your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant.
Num 23:19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
2 CHRONICLES 17:26 And now, O LORD, you are God, and you have promised this good thing to your servant.
Prov 20:22 Do not say, “I will repay evil”; wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you.
Job 1:10 Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.
JEREMIAH 29: 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Heb 13:5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
LUKE 1:71 that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us;
Eph 6:13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.
These are a few of the verses telling us what type of person God is; His character and how He deals with us.
We can see that:*God keeps His promises regarding us and the promises He makes does not fail.*God does not lie or change His mind.*God puts a hedge of protection around His people, their family, and their belongings.*God also has a GOOD PLAN for our future and to give us hope.*God will not leave or forsake us.*God will take care of us when our enemies come at us.*No matter what happens in this world, Jesus has already settled everything for us to win.
All good things come from the Lord. So, what about bad things happening? I don't have a problem trying to understand why bad things happen; Jesus tells us we will have trouble in this world but we can have peace. (John 16:33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”)
In this world, we are in a war; (Eph 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.) God on one side working all things out for the Christian's good (Rom 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.) and satan on the other side trying to destroy us. (John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.)
Let's look at Romans 8:28 again. People misread this many times. The verse tells, “us all things work together for GOOD for those who are called according to his purpose.” I have no idea what my future is; health could be good or bad; money could be little or a lot; family & relationships could be good or broken. The one thing I KNOW in all cases, God is working all things out for my good.
There's a story about an old farmer who had lived all his life on the farm as his father before him. The farmer had a son, about 19 yrs old, who helped him and his wife on the farm. This seemed to be the year that finally a good crop would come in and the farmer would be able to break even and maybe have extra. Harvest time was closing in and in about a month, all the crops would be in, sold, and the farmer could pay off every debt he owed. His neighbors came over and were as happy as he was and said “WHAT GOOD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
That night, the farmer, his wife, and son all went to sleep planning on how wonderful it would be to be all paid up with some to spare. In the wee hours of the morning, the farmer was awakened by horrible winds and rain. Looking out his window there was nothing he could do but watch and pray. “Dear Lord, You know we are counting on the crop to catch up on everything. Please help us.”
When the morning light broke over the horizon, the farmer went to check the crops. The corn was destroyed. Between the rain and the high winds, nothing was left to be salvaged. After looking over everything, the farmer went back into the house. Sitting at the table, he didn't understand why but what he did know was God. He told his wife and son what happened; in his usual way the farmer said, “I don't know how; I don't know when; I do know God will.” The neighbors came quickly and sadly saw the damage. “WHAT BAD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
His wife began to clean out the kitchen drawer of old mail when she found a letter about their insurance on the farm. Her first thought was “not another bill” as she opened it. The insurance policy had changed and now included coverage for crop damage. The farmer quickly phoned the company and true enough, his crop loss was covered. The insurance would pay $500 more than if he had sold the corn after harvest! The neighbors hearing this rushed over and said, “WHAT GOOD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
The son climbed the roof to repair the torn shingles. As he was repairing the shingles, his foot slipped on the wet roof and he fell to the ground breaking his leg. The doctor was called to set his leg. The neighbors hearing this rushed over and said, “WHAT BAD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
The farmer and his wife were busy the next few days filling out the insurance papers for the crops and the doctor. When they turned on the radio and heard that war had been declared; all men age 18 and older needed to report. The farmer's son didn't go because his leg had been broken and he was in a cast for several more weeks. The neighbors hearing this rushed over and said, “WHAT GOOD NEWS!” The farmer replied, “Good or bad? Who knows but God?”
Truly, we see to the end of our nose, if that far. I choose to be like the farmer and KNOW GOD; I don't know how; I don't know when; I do know God will.
Replies
Amen and Amen! Have a Blessed New Year)!
Love this post!
I also just read this article which I thought was really encouraging:
http://www.crowncross.org/2014/02/21/gods-sovereignty-in-the-midst-of-depression/
It is so difficult when a person believes that God will keep us from bad times or bad things. I have been through horrible things. They are part of the person I have become. They have become teaching moments that I can Pass on to someone who needs my wisdom.
Thank you for your inspirational post.
Good or bad. Who knows but God? Well said.