"God of Lights"

Every good and perfect gift,

Comes from the God of lights,

He helps us deal with everything,

And raises to new heights.

I’ve fallen from wild horses,

I’ve had some awful wrecks,

Been far down the road to hell,

And bounced my share of checks.

I’ve lived my life on borrowed time,

They shot and somehow missed,

Some think it is a wonder,

I lived through all of this.

But I know the reason,

It was God’s hand on me,

And even though I ran from Him,

He saved me, don’t you see.

I see all those disasters,

The messes I have made,

I also see forgiveness,

And how the Lord has stayed,

Close by me through my trials,

And I am sure of this,

If I will only humble walk,

His grace I will not miss.

Help us, our dear Father,

You are the God of lights,

You bless us, ever faithful,

And through our darkest nights.

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” (James 1:17, NLT).

One of my favorite phrases is: “God is good!” And the corresponding phrase is: “All the time!” And then, “All the time!” followed by “God is good!” But is He good? And is He good all the time? I’ve heard some people lately talking about the corona virus and have come pretty close to saying God sent it to the human race in order to turn people back to Himself and away from sports, entertainment, money, and all the other things that distract us from Him. I guess if you believe that, you could say God is being good to us because the illness brings us to a higher good. But while I know God uses everything, it’s just hard for me to put things like the corona virus in the “good” category. James says every GOOD gift and every PERFECT gift comes from the Father with whom there is no variation. Or as the NLT says it: “He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.” If I read it right James is saying that God is consistently sending good things. Good gifts. All the time. So why the other stuff that’s not so good? He lets is happen because it’s part of the fallen world and its curse. He uses everything that happens, particularly for the good of those who love Him. But did He send it? Let’s put it another way. Jesus portrayed God as a Heavenly Father who sends good things. He even said If you being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will He? Wow. I would never give my children a sickness just to teach them how much I love them. I don’t think God would either.

Lord, help us understand that You are always good, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Ann Hanson, annhanson.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Ann, and God bless you.