Unending Goodness–Even on the Hard Days

by Tama Fortner

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. 1 Chronicles 16:34 NIV

Yesterday was a hard day.

Everything that could possibly go wrong did go wrong. Or at least it certainly felt that way. Perhaps worst of all, every bit of it was beyond my control. (Which I just love. Or not.) My troubles ranged from big ones (a loved one’s illness, a conflict brought to me by someone seeking counsel, and the consequences of another’s poor choices) to little ones (like getting clocked in the head with a box—twice!—as I tried to clean out a closet).

Did I mention it was a hard day?

After that second clocking with the box, I plopped down in the middle of the floor. Rubbing my aching head, I poured out all my woes to God, along with a few tears. And maybe I took a few minutes for a pity party. Then, because I told myself I couldn’t sit on the floor all day, I got up and did my best to leave all those troubles with Him.

Because I was still feeling a little lonely and in need of comfort, I pulled myself together and headed out to treat myself to my favorite Chinese restaurant. The precious ladies there don’t know my name, but they know my face and my order, and they have christened me “Sweetie,” which works for me. They tend to make a bit of a fuss over me. The warm food and warm hearts were much-needed pampering for both body and soul.

Lunch was followed by a trip to the bookstore—more for research than for fun. As I walked the aisles, a flurry of texts pinged my phone, along with some emails, all related to the day’s earlier struggles. I fielded each with my own little flurry of prayers and flying fingers.

But as I drove home, I suddenly realized that with those texts and emails God had—one by one—taken care of those concerns I had laid at His feet. The illness had taken a turn for better. The conflict was resolved in a way that could only have been by divine intervention. (The Lord even threw in a surprise, just-to-say-hi call from my college kiddo.) And though the consequences of another’s poor decisions still lingered, God flooded my thoughts with reminders that He is still at work, and He does not give up on those He loves—which, thankfully, is all of us.

Driving home in the darkness, I was overwhelmed by the goodness of God. He had heard my cries. I found myself smiling and laughing out loud as I said over and over again, “Thank You, Lord! Thank You, Lord!”

Are all prayers answered so quickly and so vividly? No. We know they aren’t, don’t we? But, as His children, we also can know that we are always and unendingly surrounded by the goodness of God. He pours it out in His promises to listen to our cries and even our pity parties (Psalm 145:18), to answer in His own perfect time and way (Jeremiah 29:12–13), to love us through our troubles (Psalm 3:1–4), and to fill us with the strength to keep doing what needs to be done (2 Thessalonians 2:16–17).

Yes, God is good, and His goodness is unending. Even—and perhaps especially—on the hard days.

This article is brought to you by the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association (ASWA).

About the author: Tama Fortner is an ECPA award-winning and bestselling author with more than fifty titles to her credit, including her latest God, I Feel Sad: Bringing Big Emotions to a Bigger God, written with co-author and licensed counselor Michelle Nietert. To learn more, visit http://www.TamaFortner.com.

Join the conversation: How has God answered your prayers lately?

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