GOD IS GOOD … We say it .. a lot. We “post” it, we paint it, sticky note it, meme it, tattoo it. Do we believe that very statement ? In every moment ? That season or day? Month? Year? CIRCUMSTANCE? The place where you feel your darkest, loneliest, saddest? He is there – AND- HE really IS good. He can be nothing else .
“No one is good but ONE, that is, God.” Mark 10:18
Friend, there is no where we can be physically, emotionally, spiritually, mentally- that changes the very FACT that God is good. He is “The Good”. It’s not something changeable. God’s character IS His goodness. It is not defined by our good days, or bad days, easy days – or HARD, messed up, bottom of the pit days. He is GOOD- All the time. I can’t say that because my life has been easy . The heartache, fear, ups and downs of life have taken my breath away – and knocked my knees out from under me. But, those moments in this sinful world don’t change Who HE is. His presence was and is still with me – even when I was not in a spirit of seeking Him out. He is our ONE , True, PERFECT AND HOLY GOD. We (His very creation) are flawed and imperfect, and we put God in this “box” with limits- declaring His goodness when things go our way, implying…. He is good because we are “doing good”? What about when we are drowning in life and circumstances? Or when those we love and hold close are struggling and suffering ? He is STILL GOOD. No failure, or tragedy, or illness, or sadness, or fear, defines HIS character. ❤️ He is “The Good”. And, when we hold on tightly to that Truth, in all the things- others see the GOOD in us. God uses all the sufferings and heartache – all the muck in our lives , so that others see Jesus. His love and mercy, and oh His grace.
Ya’ll, life is hard. And everyone’s hard looks different. But even in our hard He is so good.
“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love good and are called according to His purpose for them.” Romans 8:28
Trust Him in the hard stuff- KNOW that He is good no matter what. Know that others will see that GOOD through you. Your hard, you joy, hills, valleys, and everything in between – it doesn’t change WHO HE IS. God is GOOD.
“Jesus has been good to me.” Psalm 13:6

I don’t know about you, but I like buffets. I love getting to indulge in a wide variety of foods, especially the desserts. I always leave feeling so full and content like I won’t need another meal ever again. But honestly, it doesn’t take too long for that satisfaction to dissipate and I do, in fact, get hungry again. This is a literal example of how the things of this world will not permanently fulfill us.  Although participating in worldly things can be innocent, enjoyable, and in the case of eating, necessary, they are never enough to place our hope in for life and true satisfaction. Jesus is enough. Yep, it’s that simple. What Jesus did is enough and what He provides for us is more than enough. 

When we trust God to fulfill our daily needs, His provision is abundant. We have a choice: we can either place our focus on the constant need for physical things, or we can be content with the blessings God has provided.  The Lord supplies for the needs of His people. We all know that some people have more material things than others. When we get caught up with comparison, that gives way for sin to creep in and fill our hearts with discontentment. The Lord has a plan of using our exact circumstances to grow His kingdom in ways that we may not even understand right now. That’s where faith comes in; trusting God’s way is above my own. I have all that I need if I have Jesus. 

We need to focus on the big picture; Jesus died on the cross so that we could escape the wrath of sin. That alone is enough. One of my favorite Bible stories is when Jesus feeds the five thousand with five loaves of bread and two fish. Picturing that little amount of food to feed such a large group seems impossible. Yet as we read further, we find that everyone was fed and satisfied; there were even leftovers! What a wonderful testimony to represent the way Jesus meets our physical and spiritual needs. Enjoy all the buffets, but trust in the Lord for that permanent satisfaction. Jesus is enough. 

“Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭14‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭

Nothing has torn down my illusion of control 

like my strong-willed, four year old boy.

Nothing has exposed my deep desire

to control all things like my marriage. 

Nothing has made me surrender like watching my stepdad battle cancer. 

You see, unforeseen circumstances have a way of testing our surrender. They sharpen our senses, open our eyes, and give perspective. 

I’ve learned through these things 

a tough, but freeing truth:

I’m not in control, but I do have a role. 

And all the fixers, control-freaks, and 

people-pleasers said AMEN 🙌🏼

“I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course.”

‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭10‬:‭23‬ ‭

“You can make many plans, but 

the Lord’s purpose will prevail.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭19‬:‭21‬ ‭

Our role isn’t to control. 

It’s not to carry the whole burden, fix every problem, heal everybody, or do everything. 

Our role is to honor the One in control. 

To move over and let Him move. 

To worship and watch Him work. 

To fight in prayer and follow. 

I cannot control my son’s behavior,

but God has a plan for His life. 

My role is to love and lead. 

I cannot control my entire marriage,

but God has a plan for us. 

My role is to love and honor. 

I cannot control my stepdad’s health,

but God has a plan for Him. 

My role is to pray and support. 

When we remember Who IS in control

and recognize our role, things happen. 

Freedom seeps in.

Joy is restored. 

Peace is found. 

Lives are changed. 

If I’ve learned one thing while working on a marriage and raising a wild child, it’s this:

GOD IS GOOD AT BEING GOD. 

This week, I challenge you:

Relinquish control and reassess your role.

In my current season of life I’m preparing for a marriage. I’m freshly engaged and very excited for the next phase of life. But my partner and I weren’t committed to the Lord though, we wouldn’t be where we are right now. 

We have to invite God into every single aspect of our lives. Because if we didn’t then we would be fixing our own problems, problem after problem on our own and not the Lord’s way. 

And we all have problems, don’t lie, Jesus knows. 

Life can be hard, I know. But it’s easier when we recognize the absence of Jesus, and fill it with only Jesus. 

When we realize that every problem that arises in life is because of the absence of Jesus in your life we can start to mend and heal what is broken. This is only by God’s doing, not your own. 

All it takes from us is obedience to the Father, and allowing Him to take full control of our lives. 

When we devote everything to the Lord we can start to fully experience the joy and freedom the Lord can bring. 

Anything that feels empty or broken that you might be avoiding, or filling with the things of the world, I encourage you to just give it to God. 

Find where you are letting Him be absent in your life, and let Him be fully present. 

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Psalm 16:11

Do you feel like you are in a constant battle? What is the first thing you think of when asked this? I bet it wasn’t hard to come up with something. We live in a world full of troubles that can come from every direction on a daily basis. I think we begin to believe these battles are from a physical standpoint. We think attacks come from people and things of this world, but they don’t.

“Be sober-minded;be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:8

We have a true adversary that wants to destroy our faith, cause division among God’s people, and do anything he can to stop our influence for God. He is the great deceiver. 

Because of the fall of Adam and Eve, we have inherited a sin nature which can make it easy for us to fall into his traps. He wants us to believe our battles are with each other by using people to hurt each other. 

When we attack fellow believers we are completely out of the will of God!  He wants us to doubt God’s grace in our lives. He wants our focus to be on our sufferings and the persecutions we may face. He wants us to be weak and feel alone, cut off from other believers and to doubt our faith.

“Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” 1 Peter 5:9

We need to remember during our times of sufferings we need our fellow believers in the faith. We have to learn to let offenses go. God does not want us battling each other but to stand with each other in faith. He wants us to defend and strengthen each other. We need to walk in joy and confidence that we know God has won any battle we face. Yes, God is our Defender, not against each other as fellow believers, but against the darkness of the world. We are to stand together to be strong when others are weak. Let’s do our best to be the army of God that He has called us to be.

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 4:6-7

Since giving my life to the Lord, prayer has been the biggest part of my walk with Christ. This is how I first felt God’s undeniable presence. I was struggling with some challenges in my life and decided I needed to reach out to the Lord. I asked him for guidance and wisdom to help me figure out what direction I needed to follow. As soon as I said amen I heard an answer. It was unlike anything I had felt before. I knew it had to be the Lord.

Often I feel selfish when praying for myself. There are so many things I feel I should be praying for other things than what I need. There are also times that I just have no idea what I should be praying about. I have to remind myself that prayer isn’t only for things that you or other people need but is a way to grow closer to our Heavenly Father. 

 

In Jeremiah 29:12 the Lord says, “Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.” Our God wants a personal relationship with us. I have seen this firsthand. Now when I don’t know what to pray about I just simply talk to him with no requests. The Lord is always here willing to help, but sometimes we only pray to him when we need help. We should always do this, but even when our lives seem perfect we should always have a conversation with him in prayer. 

 

Bedside nursing is one of the hardest jobs there is. 12 hour shifts, you’re understaffed, burnt out, underpaid, and under appreciated. 

If you’re a nurse, you know exactly what I mean. I think I could write a book about all the crazy things that have happened, and I’m only a year in! 

Somedays I wish I didn’t have to go into the hospital at all. I’d much rather be working my dream job. Can’t time just hurry up so I can be there already? Let’s be real, this job isn’t the dream. But then I remember, this is where He has placed me. God put me here for a reason. I am a bedside nurse now for a reason. He gave me the patients I have for the day for a reason.

Being a new mom, I am beginning to really understand the value of being present. Taking in and soaking up each moment I get with my little one. 

“Be still and know that I am God…” Psalm 46:10. When I look at this verse I used to think “am I supposed to just literally and physically sit here and listen for his instruction?” When He says “be still”, what I think He means is to be still internally. He means to be patient and have peace in knowing that everything works itself out for our good. 

I know it is hard to shift the way we think, especially when our habits of worrying are deeply rooted. But we’ll never truly grow or have an encounter with God until we let go of the anxious need to know and control everything. 

Stop worrying! We need to be confident in our God. He is faithful to us. Be confident that God is with us and makes our path. We must live each day presently, grateful for the little moments. Grateful for where he places us. Be still in your heart and enjoy the journey that God has laid out for you.

Be thankful, have faith, and be present. Be still, and know that He is in control.

Proverbs 19:21
“Many are the plans in a persons heart, but it is the Lords purpose that prevails”

Often times I find myself planning out my whole entire life and panicking when things start to go another way than what I was expecting. I tend to worry about things that haven’t even happened yet and let these possible scenarios consume my thoughts.

It is so important to let go of the things that stick in our minds and let God take control of our thoughts and our actions. No matter how much we try to plan, our lives are in Gods hands. He has your life perfectly crafted in his image and our job is to leave him in control.

Even when it doesn’t seem like it, Gods plans are always for your good. He knows exactly what he’s doing. Allow him to take the lead and guide you to where you are supposed to be. Let go & Let God.

It is so easy to analyze, talk with our neighbor, and drag on the problems of this world, but we need people to act. People who decide to stop talking about it, and do something about it. It’s time to rise up, Christian. 

Nehemiah 2: 2-3 –

“So the King asked me, “Why are you looking so sad? You don’t look sick to me. You must be deeply troubled.” Then I was terrified, but I replied, “Long live the king! How can I not be sad? For the city where my ancestors are buried is in the ruins, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.” 

In this scripture Nehemiah was concerned, and heart broken of the actions recently accomplished by the world around him. He began praying to the Lord if it was his will for him to go into the city to help rebuild the wall destroyed by the fire then send him and he will go. 

I share this today because I know we can relate to Nehemiah. I know we can relate about the gut wrenching events that happen around us daily. Even the things in our work atmosphere or things our children/family are facing. This world is desperate need of a Savior. What are we going to do about it? Can we fix it all? Probably not. But we can respond to what the Lord is calling us to do. (Matthew 28:19) I want to encourage you to RISE UP. Do something about it. The Godly way. Be the example. Be the prayer warrior someone needs. Be the one that presses on in this world to make disciples. Say yes to Christ, and watch how He will use you. 

I am thankful Nehemiah and his followers accomplished rebuilding the wall after realizing what God had called them to do. What a beautiful example of how a messy situation can be turned into something beautiful for the kingdom of God. Although it wasn’t easy for them, they pressed on. You don’t have to rebuild a wall to do the will of God. But It is your job to do what the Lord has called you to do. Be willing, and be obedient. Return the wrong of this world with good. Start today. 

It’s time to rise up, Christian. To rise up for what’s good. To rise up for what’s right. Let’s choose to do that today! You can. 

Philippians 4:13 – 

“I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me.”

In February 2023 I was at my lowest. I was fired from my job that I hated, and I was so far from God. I didn’t know what to do. 

I went to work in the plant because I didn’t want to go to college. I just wanted a job to one day provide for a family. I knew God, but I was living life my way – I needed to answer his call. 

The night I was fired I felt hopeless. God put it on my heart to open His word. I opened to a random page in the middle and stumbled on Psalms 20:4, “May He give you what your heart desires, and fulfill your whole purpose”.

God was waiting for me to answer His call. Shortly after, I was hired at Chick-Fil-A Crosby. At first I thought it was an in-between  job, but I’m currently in charge of training, and every day at work I have an opportunity to spread God’s love. 

I met my now fiancé, joined a great church family at Second Baytown, started serving in student ministry, and have grown so much closer to God. 

Thank you God for waiting for me, and showing me your love everywhere I look. 

At some point we will all need direction, and the best way to find it is in God.

Matthew 6:33 says, “Seek first the kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

If your heart is on the Lord, and you live to serve Him, He will provide. Seek the Lord in everything you do. He is good, and He is faithful. If you are in the same boat I was when I was feeling hopeless, I’m living proof of a loving God. Turn to His word, not the world, and He will fulfill your heart.