God And His Creation Are Good

Is the world getting worse? If you’re someone who regularly watches the news, your answer might be a quick and mindless yes! It only takes a few minutes of catching up on world events before you’re overwhelmed by all of the hurt that is seemingly running rampant around the globe. Even if you’re not someone who frequently watches or checks the news, bad news is everywhere. We hear of people who are sick, dying, hurting, or in need from our friends, family, and at church on a regular basis.

So does that settle it, then?

Does all of this bad news mean the world is inherently a bad place and is getting worse? While it might seem that way to some, we also have to keep in mind all of the technology we have access to that is constantly feeding us bad news. Our TVs, cell phones, computers, and tablets are pumping bad news into our minds around the clock. Of course, we know good news rarely makes it on the air. Bad news grabs our attention, pulls us in, and in turn, gets news sources more views which equates to more money. While it is their jobs to report the news, it’s our job to remember that the news offers us a limited perspective. One side of the story.

Yes, it’s true that times are tough for many. Every couple of weeks it seems like the news is reporting a new virus for us to worry about. There are people who are sick and dying. There are countries at war and rising tensions amongst nations, and rumors of another world war. Here in the U.S., we are in the midst of a housing crisis – with many people unable to afford a home. And how about inflation? I know for our household the cost of groceries has seemingly doubled in the past several years!

There are a lot of hurting people in this world right now. But when I read the Bible, I see stories of other people from long ago who were also living in a world filled with “bad news”. In fact, when we reflect on these stories we see that not much has truly changed over the course of all these years.

God Is Good

What we also know from the Bible is that God’s character is good! We see His goodness evident throughout a multitude of generations – spanning thousands of years – from Adam and Eve to David to Jesus. And we know His goodness didn’t stop there. He was good and faithful then, and He is good and faithful now. A thousand years from now? Yep. We can be certain He will still be good and faithful then! God is inherently good. And therefore, His Creation is inherently good!

Sin Leads To Heartbreak And Hurt

The thing that isn’t good is sin. Sin first entered the world when Eve was tempted by Satan in the Garden of Eden. Consequentially, it’s existed in our world ever since. Our Creator knows what’s best for us and designed us to live our lives in a way that honors Him. When we make choices that are not in alignment with this and sin, that is what leads to hurt, heartbreak, and disappointment.

Since we are all sinners and have all sinned, we’ve all played a part in creating hurt in the world. We’ve all slipped. We’ve all made mistakes. And we’ve all fell short of God’s glory. But, the good news is that our God is good, loving, merciful, slow to anger, and forgiving. If we confess our sins to Him and make the decision to repent of our sinful ways, He is quick to forgive us. And if we accept His Son as our Savior, we get to join His holy family where we’ll one day be reunited in heaven – where we shall know of no bad things ever again. Jesus is the best good news we could ever receive!

So even though we are broken people living in a broken world, we have hope not in what we see but in Him who created the world and all the living things in it. While there may be bad things happening in the world, we know that God is good and He’s got the whole world in His very capable hands!

Journal Prompt

God’s goodness is all around us if we only take a moment to look around and find it. Write about all of the good news happening in your life!

Lord, thank You for Your everlasting character! Thank You that Your goodness never changes! Show me all of the goodness You’re working together in my life. Help me to find good in the world and others everyday. Please show me how I can share the good news of Jesus with the people in my life today so that they may have hope not in what is seen, but in Your eternal kingdom.

Bible Verses

“O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.” 1 Chronicles 16:34

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

“He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.” Psalm 33:5

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