Friday, August 16, 2013

Published August 16, 2013 | By Mark Arnold

No Good Thing

My wife and I leave each other little words of encouragement on the mirror we use in the morning. When I got up this morning she had left some verses to the song based on Psalm 84. As I read that Psalm this morning it made me think about my family. There are so many things I have wanted to do for my older children, yet I have not been able to do those things. Today I think about the needs of my family, and how I want to meet those needs. I want to be a good father and husband. Thinking about these things, I thought about verse 11 where the psalmist says that God will withhold no good thing from those that walk uprightly. The word “thing” is in italics, and therefore was added. The word “uprightly” means complete in Hebrew. What is being said is that God will not hold back any good from those trying to walk in His ways. As I read these words, and thought about the thoughts on my mind, I realized that I had a choice to make. Did I believe and trust in God or not?

I can only speak to being a father. It seems to me that a mother would have some similar feelings, but likely different being the mother. I have to ask myself if I am willing to believe and trust God for the good things that my family needs. That can be a tough thing to do, or so was the thought in my mind. I tried to meditate on these things from a father’s perspective. That is when it hit me. God IS the Father. He feels what I feel, but He feels it for everyone. There is no way that He would not want things to go well for us. And He has absolute power to make it so. And, He is on our side! I have decided to believe and trust in Him to provide for my family. My hope is in His mercy and truth, that He will watch over us.

Prayer
Father, You know how I feel even before I open my mouth. You have a heart for all of the people, which is really a little amazing to me. Please help us to be that complete You speak about, to walk uprightly. It seems so easy to mess up, please help us to say and do the right things. In Jesus name. Amen.

Posted in Day 6 - Yom Shi-shi