Psalm 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. (N.K.J.V.)
I love this verse. To think that goodness and mercy will follow me all my days causes my heart to swell with emotion. I don’t deserve it. He gives it to me anyway. It’s humbling.
Here is the thing about life– it doesn’t always feel like goodness and mercy are following. And if they are, it seems they are following way, Way, WAY, behind.
Where was goodness and mercy the day I…
- Face-planted on the high school field?
- Missed the final step while exiting the school bus and landed on my back in the middle of the street?
- Heard the name Jennifer and just assumed the person nearby, whom I had never laid eyes on before, was asking me an ever important question about life… and I answered? (Note to self- Because of the movie Love Story, just about every female turning age 40 this year is named Jennifer. I must look to my right and then to my left before answering to my own name.)
- The time I miscarried a baby… again? (Um, goodness and mercy didn’t seem close by at all.)
Here is the thing about God – We don’t always feel Him. We won’t always feel His goodness and mercy. However, it doesn’t mean it’s not following. If it is written in His word, it’s truth. End of story. To survive the obstacles thrown at us in life, starting at birth and not ending until our death, it has to be about faith, not about what we are feeling.
I want to feel Him all of the time, but I just don’t. I know I’m not in the minority. I read His word, and He speaks to me through it. I pray, and sometimes I hear Him answer. Sometimes I don’t. I’m forced to live with blind faith. (Hebrews 11:1) I take small steps while praying I’m heading in the right direction. It’s my only hope.
The best part of Psalm 23:6, is the last part. “And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” My focus is on the hope of eternal life.
Titus 1:1-2
Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began. (N.K.J.V.)
Yesterday, I spoke about waiting. Today, I want to cement that His goodness and mercy are with you. You might not feel it, but it’s there. He is there.
Be encouraged; you are not alone.
