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God Is Good

I’m guessing that you chose this devotional because you’ve experienced brokenness on some level. I don’t know if you’ve lost a loved one, experienced disease, or encountered heart-breaking circumstances.

Maybe the suffering has been long and the wound in your heart feels like a gaping hole, racked with pain. It seems you will walk the earth the rest of your remaining days with an emptiness and pain that you never wished for.

The word “healing” is an interesting word. As a word nerd, I checked out the dictionary definition of “healing” and it can be an adjective or a noun. It can stand alone or describe another word. As a noun, it means “the process of making or becoming sound or healthy again.” As a verb, it means, “tending to heal; therapeutic.” Neither definition is instantaneous. Each one indicates that healing is not a flash moment with a sudden change, but it is a gradual, moment by moment, choice by choice process.

I think most of us prefer the “blind man healed” kind of miracle.

We want God to touch our hearts with one Scripture, one moment, or one message and experience full, complete, miraculous healing of our hearts. Now I know God CAN do this as evidenced throughout the Bible, and yes, He’s still fully capable of instantaneous healing today, but the question is:

How much heart-healing are we ready and willing to experience? And if we are willing, how do we receive that healing?

Introduction to Psalm 107

Psalm 107 is a psalm I've returned to over and over again. The very last verse is one of the reasons I've been drawn to repeat it: "Let the one who is wise heed these things and ponder the loving deeds of the Lord." So that takes me back up for verse 1 of Psalm 107:

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever."

Right now you may be thinking, "Really, Rachel? You started a devotion on healing your heart with a verse about giving thanks?" But don't blame me. The psalmist started it! This verse is repeated five times in Psalm 107 and the repetition is a signal for us to take notice. The words of verses 1, 8, 15, 21 and 31 are identifiers of a section break within the psalm. The writer divided the lyrics with the words of today's verse. So the question is: Why did he begin this way, and why does he repeat it?

I believe the answer is that when our hearts are hurting and the world seems like a place to merely exist, we must remember that God is still good. He doesn't lean away from His goodness. Ever. Not only can we count on His love, but we can also count on the fact that His love is everlasting. His perspective is not limited as ours. He sees beyond this moment, this day, and yes, this life. When we can't find thanks for our current circumstances, we can thank Him for His goodness, His ever-available love and life to come.

Let's Pray

Lord, I give thanks to You because I know that You are good. Even when bad things happen, Your goodness hasn't changed, and I praise You for that. Thank You for loving me with a love that never fails and endures forever. May my heart receive Your love, and help me begin to absorb it.

If today's devotion created a little spark in your heart to lean into God's goodness, then don't miss tomorrow! See you then.