Every year I pray this for myself and my family before I move into the new year.
This year 2014 was no exception. I prayed this verse again & again for myself & my family - Ps 65:11" You crowned the year with Your goodness. Your paths drip with abundance."
The Lord gave me a better understanding of this verse on New Year's day.
2014 is a year indeed crowned with His goodness but only on one condition that I learn to keep to His paths and not my paths. Only His paths & His paths alone will bring about the "dripping with abundance".
This year I felt led to do some research on the significance of the verse even as I shared this during Watch Night service and decreed this for the church during early morning prayer on Jan 1.
"Goodness" refers to the character & inherent nature of God.
In the Hebrew it is "towb" meaning "welfare, prosperity & happiness". In other words God has my welfare, prosperity & happiness at heart! What a comfort! What a joy to know this!
10 wonderful truths about the "goodness" of God:
1. Goodness is an essential character of God and it is very great
Exodus 34:6 "And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, "The Lord, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth"
Ps 31:19 "Oh, how great is Your goodness, which you have laid up for those who fear You, which You have prepared for those who trust in You in the presence of the sons of men!"
Isa 63:7 "I will mention the lovingkindness of the Lord and the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord bestowed upon us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel...."
2. Goodness is a fruit of the Holy Spirit
If we yield ourselves fully to the Holy Spirit, we will surely bear the fruit of goodness.
Gal 5:22 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness and truth"
Eph 5:9 "(for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness and truth)"
3. God's Goodness is a blessing & a crown of pure gold
Ps 21:3 "For You meet him with the blessings of goodness;You set a crown of pure gold upon his head"
4. God's Goodness (& mercy) is our companion all the days of our life
Ps 23:6 "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever"
5. God's Goodness can satisfy our spiritual longing & our spiritual thirst
Ps 107:9 "For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness"
Jer 31:14 "I will satiate the soul of the priests with abundance, and my people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says the Lord"
Neh 9:25 "And they took strong cities and a rich land, and possessed houses full of all goods, cisterns already dug up, vineyards, olive groves, and fruit trees in abundance. So they ate and were filled and grew fat, and delighted themselves in Your great goodness"
During the corporate prayer meetings, I often find myself crying out for more of the Lord. In doing so I am seeking to be filled to the brim with the goodness of God even to the overflowing....!
6. God's Goodness is found in the local church, the Bride of Christ
Jer 31:12 "Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, streaming to the goodness of the Lord - for wheat and new wine and oil, for the young of the flock and the herd; their souls shall be like a well-watered garden, and they shall sorrow no more"
The wheat is like the pure word of God. The wine & the oil is the sweetness of the Holy Spirit. Truly those who feed themselves with the wheat, the wine and the oil will never be thirsty or dry.
7. God's Goodness leads us to repentance
Rom 2:4 "Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?"
It is the goodness (forbearance & longsuffering) of God that is going to lead my mother to repentance not my own goodness, no matter how much I give her in monthly allowance, no matter how much good deeds I seem to do for her...surely nothing can move her heart to call upon Jesus but the riches of His goodness which will lead her to repentance.
8. God's Goodness will enable us & empower us to do His will
2 Thess 1:11 "Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power"
In the prayer ministry and in my LG - I really need the "good pleasure of His goodness" in order to work of faith with power.
9. God's Goodness gives us hope in times of trouble
Ps 27:13 "I would have lost heart, unless I have believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living"
As long as I know that there is the goodness of God reaching out to me to help me through my tough times, there will always be hope for me in all the trials I am going through.
10. God's Goodness will keep us in the right path
Prov 2:20 "So you may walk in the way of goodness, and keep to the path of righteousness"
To walk in the path of righteousness is to walk in the path of goodness.
What does God wants me to do? I believe He wants me to release faith for His goodness in my life by giving thanks to Him.
Ps 107:8 "Oh that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!"
Ps 107:15 "Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to the children of men!"
Ps 107:21 "Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!"
Ps 107:31 "Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!"
LORD bless me & my family with Your Goodness in every area of our lives - work, family, ministry. In Jesus Name. Amen
No comments:
Post a Comment