Such good stuff!!!!

How God’s Goodness and Mercy Follow You

I Didn’t Get It

In the last verse of Psalm 23 David says “surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.”

For years I didn’t get it.  I pictured me walking through my day — and maybe 50 yards behind me God’s goodness and mercy were following.

How is that good news?

A Crucial Hebrew Word

But then I learned something crucial about that word “follow.”

It’s the Hebrew word radaph — which means “to pursue, to set off after someone in order to catch him.”

So God’s goodness and mercy do not follow 50 yards behind me every day — they are pursuing me in order to catch me every day.

It’s like you were speeding and now a police car is following you with its red light on — it’s following you in order to catch you and give you a ticket.

That’s what God does — except when He catches you He does not give you a ticket — He gives you even more of His goodness and mercy.

A Powerful Promise

Faith means trusting all that God promises to be to us in Christ Jesus.

Here God promises that He will pursue you in order to catch you with His goodness and mercy — and He will do this every single day of your life.

So what does this mean?

• No matter how far from God you feel — He is always pursuing you with goodness and mercy to change your heart and strengthen your faith.  Fight the fight of faith.  He will meet you.
• Every interruption is God bringing you His goodness and mercy.  Submit your plans to Him, and ask Him what He wants to do for you.
• Every trial is a gift of God’s goodness and mercy.  You will either see His mercy delivering you from the trial, or satisfying and comforting you in the trial.
• In every hard task God is pursuing you with His goodness and mercy — He will help you, guide you, surprise you, and satisfy you.
• Whenever you sin, God is pursuing you with goodness and mercy to forgive you, cleanse you, and restore you.  Confess your sin.  Repent before Him.  Receive all He has for you.
• Whenever you feel inadequate, God is pursuing you with goodness and mercy to give you everything you need to do all He calls you to do.  Turn to Him.  Ask Him for help.  Watch what He does.