Over the last few days I have been reading one of the popular Christian books that are around at the moment. As I did I was struck again at the realisation of the goodness of God.
Not many years ago Oral Roberts received much criticism for making that statement " God is good" and adding " something good is going to happen to you today".
So many people over the years have blamed God for so much that He had nothing to do with. Most often tragedy hits as a result of just living in our fallen world and because of the way some are increasingly out for themselves at the expense of others. Faced with such hurt that seems  so unfair we wonder why God did nothing to stop it and so we walk away from Him instead of running to Him when such pressure comes.
In reality  God did the very best He could to stop it. He sent His son Jesus to die for us and wipe out the root cause of all our problems, the sin and rebellion that desires to be independent and therefore keeps us from a relationship with Him.
Many think of God as someone who is out to get us all the time and often refer to parts of the Bible to prove it. Yet the bible is full of quotes declaring the reverse. Psalm 118:29 for example declares "Give thanks unto the Lord for He is good for His mercies endure forever". So we really have to do a shift in our thinking about God. He is inherently good. In fact he is goodness itself. I know for some that may be difficult but it is true. You only have to look around and consider the wonders of creation to see that. In his goodness he provided for example trees, flowers, rivers and animals, all for us to enjoy. He gave us a planet full of food(and yes there still is enough to go around). He has a plan for our future that is awesome and all we have to do is to accept His son as our saviour to enjoy it.

This New Year may bring all manner of things your way. Some will be great others not so great. Why not determine to see God differently this year. He is constantly at your side, out for your good no matter what happens. He is for you in the good times and the bad and if you follow Him and seek His best you will always find a way through in Him.
This is confirmed in the words of the book I read, the reason is "God is extremely fond of you". Therefore he is always seeking the best for you.

Have a wonderful and blessed New Year

Tony