Taste God's Goodness

The word good seems one note compared to words like grand, super, best or better.

Today was a good day when my wife and I travelled north to visit a small town. We took in the sights along the way. Enjoyed an afternoon in antique stores. The weather was gloriously bright and very warm. Over all you might say it was a very good day.

When it comes to describing God as good we often fall back on our own definition based on good experiences and delightful moments. Psalms 145:9 says, "The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works." (KJV). The word good in the original means pleasant, agreeable, and good.

Can we say God is agreeable when someone we love is suffering from cancer? Or if we lost our job and face a mountain of bills? When the questions are too many and answers so few? Can we say in those painful moments like Gwen Wilkerson whose last words were, "God is good."? The same woman who battled cancer her entire life and lost her husband in an accident a year before her death.

We are not agreeing to death, destruction or pain but we acknowledge by faith God is good. Nothing can truly compare to God's goodness. It's not an emotion or based on some effort of our own. Too often what the world calls good is temporal, conditional and requires energy to maintain a euphoric state of feeling good about themselves.

Let me leave one Scripture for your thoughts.

O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. Psalms 34:8 (KJV).

Taste?

Yes, because Scripture tells us His word is like honey to our lips (Psalms 119:103). When we taste His goodness those painful moments and harsh experiences can't leave a bitter taste in our mouth. We can say sincerely and sweetly, "God is good."