2. Certainty in Goodness

I am certain that I will see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living.

Wait for the Lord;

Be strong and let your heart be courageous.

Wait for the Lord.

Psalm 27:13-14

No one has ever accused me of being demure. In fact, I’ve been told for most of my life that I tend towards the dramatic (I added the italics for the drama). But one of my most problematic tendencies is not having patience for God’s creation. More often than not I will look to sky and exclaim (again, dramatically) “BURN IT TO THE GROUND, LORD. THIS ISN’T WORTH IT ANYMORE!” at which point my husband will gently take my hand and remind me that I can’t, actually, coerce the Almighty to return like He said He will.

It can be difficult to watch what is happening in North America and not get frustrated. People panicking and buying literally all the pasta at my local grocery store, no TP in sight, and I even heard a rumour that the professional N95 masks that nurses require to protect themselves in hospital are mysteriously going missing from locked supply closets.

We will start to hear stories of the goodness of humanity: neighbours helping neighbours, communities lending a helping hand. But if we put all our eggs in humanity’s basket, we are going to be disappointed. Instead, in Psalm 27, David encourages us that we will see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living. The goodness of the Lord will always surpass our feeble attempts. All we can do is try our very best to honour God and chase after His heart. That means pursing justice, righteousness and mercy. That means bringing joy and hope and peace wherever we go.

And while waiting for the Lord may not be my strong point, I’m going to keep doing it. Because when He does come back for me, or when He calls me to go home to Him, I want to be able to stand up and say I pursued His goodness in this, the land of the living.

Today, take a moment to look for God’s character in those around you, and figure out a way you can show it to someone else.