Seeing the Good

“Prove all things; hold fast what is good.” 1 Thessalonians 5:21 KJV.

“Everything that is good or will be good, may not seem good to you at the time.”

My thoughts today are about “seeing the good.”

Maybe everyone’s mother said, “Eat your vegetables; they’re good for you.” All I knew was that they didn’t look good, and I didn’t think they would taste good either, and I had no interest in trying them. But Mom knew best (and was the boss!); she knew, and had convinced Dad, the nutrition and vitamins that I needed, and that my tastes would eventually mature and change.

Ever wonder who decides what’s good and what’s not? It would seem to me that only the one who knows why something is good can pronounce it as such. God looked at His creation and pronounced, “It is very good.” Genesis 1. God should know!

Eventually you learn that everything that is good, or will be good, may not seem good at the time. Usually, good is a subjective and arbitrary interpretation of how you feel about something at the moment, rather than an accurate evaluation of potential or intrinsic value. People rush to judgment, with little time or regard, accepting as fact what they judge true right now.

If you know the story of Joseph, you know how amazing is the grace and forgiveness he showed his brothers and the even greater faith in God he demonstrated when he said, “God intended it for good.” How they treated Joseph was not good by any definition, and what subsequently happened to him because of their behavior could not be described as good.

Joseph did not feel good about being abandoned in a pit, and sold as a slave far from home. He did not feel good about a woman’s accusations and lies, nor see any good about being wrongly thrown into prison. The day came when he saw the providential hand of God all along the way – not causing the very bad things that happened to him – but faithfully orchestrating the good that did result. Not good at the time, but best in God’s time! Then Joseph could confidently say, “You planned evil against me, but God intended it for good.” Genesis 50:20.

Much later, the Apostle Paul would write, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28 NIV. Really, there are difficult times when trusting that truth is quite a leap of faith. Remember; God does not promise everything begins as a good thing or concludes in the way you regard good, nor that the promise is true for every individual who wishes it to be – it is only irrevocably true for those “who love God, who have been called according to His purpose.”

Read the verse that follows. The good to which God promises to work is: according to His purpose for your life. And what is that? “To be conformed to the likeness of His Son!” Romans 8:29 NIV. That’s what life is all about; that is very good.

My prayer for you today is that you understand all that is good is always best.