Looking for Goodness

“I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD!” Psalm 27:13-14

If there has ever been a week to ‘lose heart’ it is this week. Yesterday I attended the ceremony of the passing of my precious cousins’ granddaughter. She had only marked off 21 years on this earth before she arrived in her heavenly home. Today I will attend another ceremony of some dear friends who will also be committing their sister and daughter back to Jesus. I have had such a heavy heart for these families since last Friday. This morning, as I lifted my petitions of prayer on behalf of these families, I asked the Lord to guide me to fresh words to comfort my soul. The passage above washed over me with new mercies that my heart needed and maybe your heart needs this morning.

In the middle of heartbreaking circumstances this passage reminds us that the way to navigate through a shattered heart is to believe. It promises that when we approach God with the belief that we will see goodness from the heart of God it will open our eyes to the land of the living, even while we are experiencing death. His word advises us to wait on the Lord…wait in the still and quiet moments of prayer and He will comfort and give peace…wait for the process of healing and the restoration of the soul. Further it tells us that it will take courage to wait…courage to really believe that He is still with us and hasn’t forsaken us in our circumstances. And the blessing that follows this belief, patience and courage is the strengthening of our heart and the vision to still see the good.

Let’s face it…grief stinks! It is love turned inside out laid raw and visible for the world to see. But in that description, we must also realize that while God is holding us with one arm He has our loved ones cradled in the other arm. They have closed their eyes to this world of sin, darkness and trouble and have opened their eyes as residents of Revelation. The last beat of their earthly life of Genesis…temptation, sin and sorrow has been replaced with a new heartbeat…a Revelation heart…a reality of reunions, perfection and no sorrow. But while they are experiencing perfection in Heaven God promises to not leave us in our grief. He longs to show us how to continue to see the good things in the land in which we live until the reunions are our reality. So, for now our part in seeing His goodness and having our hearts strengthened is to believe…to wait…to be courageous in our brokenness…and He will deliver everything we need in our suffering.

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” Psalm 34:18