Father, You are good đź’ś You heard my simple but heartfelt prayer for uninterrupted sleep and You gave it. Even when I stirred in the early morning hours You lulled me back to sleep – and I praise You! In Your great and mysterious sovereignty – the Scripture reading this morning was from Psalm 116, which says: “Return to your rest, my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.” Yes, in the night You gave me the restful sleep I desperately sought – but the greater gift of Your goodness, as the Psalmist goes on to describe is this –
You have delivered me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling that I may walk before You in the land of the living -Psalm 116: 8-9
And as the Psalmist – “I trusted in You when I said, many times over, I am greatly afflicted,” and so also I say with him – “What shall I return to the LORD for all His goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on Your name – O LORD.”
Your praise and goodness will continually be in my heart and on my tongue. My lips will glorify Your great name forever and forever – Amen!
Father, You are good. In You I have put my trust. Show me Your ways LORD, teach me Your ways for they are right and good like You. Guide me in Your truth and teach me for You are my God and Savior and Your Spirit lives in me for this reason đź’™ My hope is in You all day long! Oh how I love and depend on You. (Psalm 25:1-5 and John 14:26)
Father, You are good and You have taught me that when I keep my eyes on You – and remember You are with me – I will not be shaken.
I have set the LORD always before me; because He is at my at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Psalm 16:8
You are my Protector, my Defender, my Strength, my Comforter, Deliverer, Hope and Light and so much more. You are my Everything. Blessed be Your holy name and the Truth of Your promises. đź’ś
This morning’s prayer reminded me of an old hymn and that led me to chasing down some Scriptures. I’m sharing both (the song and the Scriptures) with the hope and prayer that they will bless your day as much as they have mine.
HowFirm a Foundation (John Robbins 1787)
VERSE 1
How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word
What more can He say than to you He hath said
To you who for refuge to Jesus have fled (Matthew 7:24-27)
VERSE 2
Fear not, I am with thee; oh be not dismayed
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid
I’ll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand (Isaiah 41:10)
VERSE 3
When through the deep waters I call thee to go
The rivers of sorrow shall not overflow
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress (Isaiah 43:2; Psalm 46:1; James 1:1-2)
VERSE 4
When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie
My grace all sufficient shall be thy supply
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine (1 Peter 4:12-19; 2 Corinthians 9:8; Isaiah 48:10)
VERSE 5
The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose
I will not, I will not desert to its foes
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake (Matthew 11:29; Proverbs 18:10; Psalm 16:8; Deuteronomy 31:6)
Father, You are good – blessing me with the indwelling of Your Holy Spirit – through whom You have not only sealed me as Your own and fulfilled Your promise to always be with me, but You also made a way to communicate with me.
There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own but will tell you what He has heard. He will tell you about the future.
You are good to speak TRUTH and in Your omniscient power, You know what to say and when I need to hear it.
I am blessed that You, the Most High God, would want to speak with me; and even greater is the blessing to know the depth of Your desire to make it happen meant sending Christ – Your only begotten Son – to live in human flesh and die in my place on a cross of shame.
To say that “You are good” does not begin to convey Who You are nor what You have done – for truly – Your greatness no one can fathom!
Surely, God, Your Name is great and greatly to be praised! And at the Name of Jesus, Your Son, every knee will bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth and every tongue will confess that He is Lord! And this to Your glory – my Father and my God! Amen and amen!
Father, You are good! You are kind and gracious to call us into Your Presence and to give us Your Word and Your Spirit that we might hear from You and know You and Your will. And in doing so – we are forever changed!
Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Rom 10:17
We are saved by Your Word! We are built up and sanctified by It – changed and set apart for You.
Now I entrust you to God and to the Word of His grace that is able to build you up and give you an inheritance with all those He has set apart for Himself. Acts 20:32
Knowing It protects us.
I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against You. Ps 119:11
My child pay attention to what i say. Listen carefully to My words, for they are life to those who find them and healing to their whole body. Prov 4:20-22
Your Spirit teaches It to us and counsels us with It and by It we are convicted and made right.
But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father sent will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to You. John 14:26
Father, no matter what else I forget and no matter how deaf or blind I may continue to become – please – never let me fail to remember Your Word or to hear Your voice or to follow where It leads. In Jesus’ powerful name – amen and amen!
God you are good! You have, this day, blessed me with 57 years of life🎉 This number represents more than years of life though – it is a reminder that …
through FAITH in Jesus Christ, I have known you as my God for 51 years – and
for 30 years I have been GROWING in the knowledge of Your grace and of my Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ ❤️ and in the nurture and admonition of Your amazing, never failing LOVE!
So while I celebrate and am deeply thankful another year of life today – my greater celebration is in You!
I bow in worship and celebrate who You are and that You made Yourself known to me!
I bless Your Name – Name above all Names – and celebrate being adopted into Your family and known as a child of God!
I praise You for all that you have done for me for 57 years – and celebrate my salvation 51 years ago – and Your mercy to bring me to a fuller understanding of Your Grace and to grow me up in the nurture and admonition of Your Love over the past 30 years!
As I was writing these words – a song from many years back started playing in my mind – And will be my song of celebration today 🎶
Father, You are Good – To define it is sometimes difficult – because it is simply and yet profoundly who You are – GOOD! Teach me to know Your goodness – to see it, and hear it, and sense it, and to walk in it, and share it all of my days. For You desire it in me and by Your Spirit have equipped me for it.
Even as I asked this of You – to teach me to know Your Goodness – I lay down my pen and begin to read from my “One Thousand Gifts” devotional and you meet me there on the page revealing Your goodness in Your intimacy with me – for there on the page I read: “Augustine had asked two questions of the world: ‘If there is no God, why is there so much good? If there is a God, why is there so much evil?'” … I continue to read, and line upon line alludes to Your goodness. I asked, and You begin to answer – and even Your beginning – it is Good. “All this good makes me grateful, and my own heart needs this – A filling of His great-fullness. Gratefulness is always to someone, and when I am grateful, isn’t it always evidence of God? – A filling of awe of His goodness.” I turned the page, and there it was – the ultimate expression – just what I began this prayer with – Your answer to me – “There are things that need no words. HIS LOVE clearly manifest in the everywhere problem of GOOD.”
WOW God! and I echo the prayer Ann pens at the bottom of the page – “… in a world that faces the very real problem of evil, may I face it everywhere today – the very real proof of good.” And Father, may I – in seeing it and hearing it and sensing it – may I then be given words that are fitting to proclaim it! Your goodness begs to be proclaimed!
As I drove to work, You continued to answer by opening my senses to the bulging river, green trees, the fresh air, the donkey and the kid (goat) – I love seeing them – it is the simple things that make me smile. And again, my soul echoes – You are Good!
A text from a loved one, desperate for peace – and in Your infinite goodness, you whisper a line from an old hymn – “Like a shepherd, Jesus will guard His children, In His arms He carries them all day long.”
If you struggle to define it, consider CeCe Winans’ song, Goodness of God, (one of my favorites) … “His mercies never fail us … He leads us through the fire … He is both Father and Friend ...”
I love You, Lord For Your mercy never fails me All my days, I’ve been held in Your hands From the moment that I wake up Until I lay my head Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God
‘Cause all my life You have been faithful And all my life You have been so, so good With every breath that I am able Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God
I love Your voice You have led me through the fire In darkest night You are close like no other I’ve known You as a Father I’ve known You as a Friend And I have lived in the goodness of God1 ~
Me From the Inside Out 