God’s Goodness
These recent two weeks have been amongst some of the best weeks I’ve had in a while. Praise God for that! He has been so good to me. And He has also answered a few of my prayers. Well, of course, God always answers our prayers. Sometimes it’s a “yes,” sometimes it’s a “no,” and other times it’s a “wait.” But, recently I’ve been able to see how several of my prayer requests have come to materialize. And I want to publicly thank my Heavenly Father for His kindness and goodness to me. I want to thank Him for His sovereign providence and provision over my life. He knows my needs even before I ever knew of them myself. He providentially sends different people into my life with the right temperaments and personalities that He knows would uplift me, encourage me, teach me, and edify me. It is so wonderful to be around God’s people who love Him and His truths! They challenge us in the faith. They make us want to be a better and godlier Christian. They set an example for us so we are reminded to set the bar higher in our walk with God. And through their examples, they help us see how it is possible to live out the godly principles laid out in Scripture. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. And so it is when we see a living embodiment of the kind of character traits we strive to cultivate in ourselves. That is so encouraging.
When I look back over the different stages of my life, I can now see in retrospect that God has always been there for me. He is good to me not only when things are going well for me, for example, like this recent week. He is good not only when He answers prayers with a “yes.” He is good even when He said “no” because in His divine providence and omniscience, He knows what is best for me. 
He was good even when times seemed so dry and hopeless in my life. He uses even the seemingly “bad” things in my life for good and for the purpose of teaching me. He uses bad times to draw me closer unto Him so I may rely upon Him more. God used those times I walked through the deep valleys of life so that I may look up and behold the great heights of His love from below and experience the rich depths of His mercy. He sovereignly orchestrates everything for His purpose (Romans 8:28). I am so thankful, humbled, and grateful to know such a good, merciful, loving God Who is actively involved in the lives of His children, Who does all things according to the council of His will and His good pleasure, and for His own glory. We serve an awesome God indeed.
May 18th, 2007 at 1:28 am | Permalink
What a beautiful testimony of praise to the Lord! Thanks for sharing that, Jessica!
May 18th, 2007 at 2:18 pm | Permalink
Hi Patrick, it’s nice to hear from you. Thanks for taking the time to stop by and comment.
May 18th, 2007 at 5:52 pm | Permalink
Praising God with ya, Jessica. He is indeed good to us at all times.
May 18th, 2007 at 10:46 pm | Permalink
Hi Joshua,
Thanks so much! Yes, God is so good and merciful. He is always in control, sovereign, and knows what’s best.
May 19th, 2007 at 2:33 am | Permalink
I can sense your love for God in your sentences. And I really praise God for that. A little suggestion: it will be more personal and powerful, if you share the specific story that drove you to write this testimony. By the way, I’ve seen the pictures
Thanks.
May 19th, 2007 at 11:08 pm | Permalink
So true. If it weren’t for grace, I don’t know where I’d be right now. It is the only thing that gives me the desire to get up tomorrow.
May 20th, 2007 at 8:38 pm | Permalink
Jessica,
“Rejoice in the Lord always. … Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” [Phil. 4:4, 6-7]
It is a joy to read of how you look to our sovereign Lord concerning the various situations | circumstances that you face on a daily basis. It appears that you have come to understand Phil. 4:4, 6-7 in your application towards your daily walk. I commend you for that.
Perhaps another verse that may bring comfort to you is that of Psalm 124:8 – “Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” Over the course of life God has been and still is bringing me around to an understanding of that implication. God is my Ebenezar. It truly is so great to know such a loving Father. Later …
May 21st, 2007 at 10:16 am | Permalink
Yes, God always knows what’s best for us, even in the times of our worst confusion. Thank you for sharing that with us. I’m excited for you and whatever is happening in your life right now.
May God receive all the glory.
May 23rd, 2007 at 10:40 pm | Permalink
Thank you all so much!
Thanks for sharing the edifying Bible verses, your encouragement, and suggestions! You’re all so kind. It is so good to be able to share God’s goodness with you and I’m so glad that you could read about it. 
May 29th, 2007 at 6:10 am | Permalink
Hey Jessica,
Just thought I would stop by and say hey. How are you doing? Up to anything fun? Talk to you soon.
Elisa
June 6th, 2007 at 7:12 am | Permalink
Jessica, it was great to hear from you on our blog! I enjoyed reading yours this morning, and I hope we’ll get to see you again at the next fellowship meal this Saturday. It was a joy to get to know you a bit at the last one. Many blessings to you in your walk with Lord!
June 20th, 2007 at 10:18 am | Permalink
Jessica,
I am always encouraged to spend time chatting with someone so excited about life – thanks, and looking forward to more talk-time! Blessings to you as you seek to learn and serve our Lord.
June 20th, 2007 at 4:43 pm | Permalink
Dear Linda,
Thank you so much for stopping by and taking the time to leave a comment.
It’s so nice to hear from you. Hope to talk to you again soon. 
July 5th, 2007 at 4:29 am | Permalink
Hello
Great book. I just want to say what a fantastic thing you are doing! Good luck!
G’night