Goodness & Mercy

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life... Psalm 23.6a

The worn rocking chair beckons me. My parent's wide front porch was designed for moments like this. I can't resist. I fill my favorite mug with hot coffee and, for moment, stop. I am able to discern at least four different bird calls. I hear the distinct tapping of a wood pecker... and spot him. The gentle breeze catches the flag, stars and strips spreading, my heart fills with American pride. Texas wildflowers are still in bloom--bold and unruly. I love Texas. Delicate butterflies, hundreds of them, dance about between the floral rainbows my sister planted. The flower beds have never been the same since she left home. Married, now with-child. I miss my sister. The low, drawn-out 'moo' from one of dad's cows steals my attention. I look that direction, across his orchard of pregnant fruit trees. Dad works so hard. The clean fence line. I can almost see my brothers working on it--brows beaded with sweat, red cheeks, and leather gloves. The smell of rosemary, lavendar, mint, and roses linger on my hands from a walk around the house, arm in arm, with Grandma. We stopped at every plant, touching, tasting, smelling. A simple 'outing'--a memory stamped on my heart forever. We comment on the flourishing garden, my mother and her faithfulness to dirt, weeds, cooking, canning... to her family. A tiny hummingbird whizzes past my head. Back in the rocking chair, my little sister sits beside me, composing a handwritten letter. Who does that anymore? My sister. My lovely little sisters who enjoy tea cups, crimping the edges of a homemade pie crust, and carrying their cat in a basket.

 

Life doesnt promise good things. Just last week I attended a double funeral--grandmother and grandchild. Life can be so painful. I know.

 

Oh, but in this moment, I am reminded that life is also so beautiful. God does give us good things to enjoy. To point to Himself. To remind us that He is here. He is present. Always. Even when suffering grips us. . . .all this beauty remains in the background. How often does my focus shift to the negative in life--forgetting that even in the midst of sorrow, God's goodness is present?

That God is present. And God is good, all the time.

God is good... all the time. Why? His promise of 'goodness and mercy' does not mean our life will be free of pain. Rather, it 'follows us daily' because His grace and mercy redeem us daily! What damnation I have been saved from! Oh that I would keep my eyes fixed on HIM, on the cross, that I might not forget the goodness that is always mine--eternal salvation.

One thing have I asked of the Lord,
that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
and to inquire in his temple.

Psalm 27.4