Even when all chaos breaks out against us and we despair of life itself, one of our battles is to keep our eyes fixed on the Lord. It can be hard to remember that God is good. Sometimes our weary hearts and wounded minds struggle to acknowledge through the tears that God is good. We question ourselves, “how can I declare that God is good when nothing in my life is working out?” But God’s goodness is not dependent upon our circumstances. The Bible reminds us that God’s character is secure, unchanging, and worthy to be praised.  

David’s words in Psalm 27 encourage me to fix my eyes, my mind, and my heart on the Lord, to worship Him – especially in times of trouble. David seeks the Lord in times of trouble, desiring to draw near to Him in worship. David does not turn away in fear, nor does he become bitter in his suffering, but continues to seek the Lord and to anticipate seeing the goodness of the Lord. 

Would we be given the grace to be able to call God good even as our hearts break? 

When there are credible death threats against us 

When terrorists attack near us 

When there is loss and devastation due to natural disasters 

When we are questioned by our board or supporters 

When the mob boss is threatening our lives 

When we are slandered in the newspaper 

When the Minister of the Interior denies our visa 

When there is civil unrest and government crackdown 

When war breaks out against our people 

When our kids struggle and wander from the faith 

When our colleague is kidnapped or imprisoned 

When we are slandered by someone close 

When we are spied on, robbed, sexually assaulted, and threatened on every side 

When our bodies and minds fail us 

When there is no fruit to show for our labors 

When partners leave us 

These are some of the things I have experienced in the past 10 years – either directly to my family or colleagues or in our church plant. In each of those moments, the Lord met me and was tender to me. He gave me the grace to seek Him, to trust Him, and to see His goodness – even when the situation did not resolve how I wanted. He revealed His Word to me and comforted me in ways I cannot understand.  

Would God give us the grace – not just in hindsight – but in the midst of suffering to draw near to Him, to be comforted by Him, to behold His goodness and to faithfully proclaim His name?