The LORD is good to all, and His mercy is over all that He has made.
Psalm 145:9 ESV
When you say “overwhelmed” or hear someone else use the word, what associations immediately come to mind?
Perhaps you picture yourself buried under a stack of work.
Maybe you see yourself standing under a deluge of trials and troubles pouring down upon you.
Or, it could be that you feel like a walking target at which everyone around you is standing with bows drawn and guns raised—all ready to take their best shot.
Overwhelmed. Positive, life-affirming images are likely not the first to come to mind when you think of being overwhelmed.
Overwhelmed. The word typically gets a bad rap—lousy press most of the time. Frankly, well deserved.
There was an extremely dark and difficult period in our lives when we were overwhelmed in the worst sense of the word. Our carefully structured and tightly controlled life was falling apart, and a dear loved one battled a cruel disease that seemed to have the winning hand.
We had control over nothing. There was no possibility that Russ (my husband) and I could fix things or make our situation better by ourselves.
Although we had often said, “God’s in control,” I don’t think we fully believed that. We lived like we thought we were in a position to give God a helping hand—as though God needed us to help Him operate the controls.
Finally, we got it. We threw up our hands in complete surrender, acknowledging that nothing was in our control. We were overwhelmed in the extreme.
In that season of despair, we began to see the goodness of God like never before. We claimed each kindness and every good thing as precious gifts sent especially to encourage us and urge us onward. God’s goodness propelled us forward while drawing us closer to Him.
Please understand I’m not saying God sent speedy solutions and quick fixes to remedy our situation. He didn’t. Not at all. Most of the solutions and fixes we hoped for never arrived.
But the goodness of God became real and vital to us. It was our lifeline. We began looking for signs of God’s goodness around us.
We weren’t looking for the spectacular or the miraculous—although that’s what we sometimes found. The more we looked, the more we saw.
The more we saw God’s goodness, the more joy and peace we began to experience. The joy and peace had nothing to do with the reality of our situation; it had everything to do with God.
Towards the end of that period, I began noting evidence of God’s goodness in my daily prayer journal. Fast forward to today, my prayer journal has officially become a praise and prayer journal.
By the end of each month, my daily praise recordings significantly dwarf my list of prayer requests. As I write out my thanksgiving and praises each day and then spend time in God’s Word, I am frequently overwhelmed and overcome by the goodness of God.
Overwhelmed. By the goodness of God.
And Jesus said to him, “… No one is good except God alone.”
Luke 18:19 ESV
God alone is perfect goodness. There is no part of God’s nature that is not good. His actions are always perfectly just, righteous, holy, merciful, loving, and good. God is the source of all goodness, just as He is the wellspring from which all holiness, love, mercy, righteousness, and truth flow.
All creation and its inhabitants reap the benefits of God’s goodness—whether recognized or acknowledged as coming from God. God’s goodness bears witness to His existence and love for all humanity.
God’s general goodness includes a warm summer’s day, snow-capped mountains glistening beneath a starry sky, a baby’s laugh, the work of a gifted artist, beautiful melodies that linger in the heart, and so many other good things that God has gifted to His creation as a whole.
The LORD is good to all, and His mercy is over all that He has made.
Psalm 145:9 ESV
In the lives of God’s children—His chosen ones, Believers in Christ Jesus—God’s goodness extends beyond the general good enjoyed by all humankind. Here’s a short list for you to explore:
- God’s everlasting love and eternal life (Psalm 118:29)
- In God we find fulfillment and satisfaction (Psalm 107:9)
- God equips us to serve and bring Him glory (Hebrews 13:21)
- He is our ever-present refuge in times of need and trial (Psalm 31:19)
- He withholds no good thing from His children – He only offers His best for each of us (Psalm 84:11, James 1:17)
The more intentionally I look for God’s goodness, the more clearly and frequently I see it displayed in my life: laughter over coffee with a sweet friend, opportunities to use my gifts to serve others, the cardinal and his missus who show up on our bird feeder most days, the duck family that waddles across the yard each morning, a tasty meal, a heart-warming worship service, a Bible passage that speaks directly to my heart, a note of encouragement, and so many other things that speak of God’s goodness.
God’s goodness will show itself differently from person to person. His gifts are personal and specific. God knows the good gift you need when you need it.
Don’t let life’s overwhelming chaos prevent you from living joyfully in God’s overwhelming goodness.
I challenge you to let God’s goodness overwhelm you. If you look for God’s goodness, you will begin to see it. And once you start to see it, God will increasingly reveal His goodness in your life.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever. –Psalm 23:6 ESV
I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.” — Psalm 16:2 ESV