All Good Things Come From God

Welcome to November! Growing up, you were probably taught to say please and thank you. If you’re like me, your mom or dad gave you those eyes that cut deep into your soul if you even blinked without saying those “magic words.”

Unfortunately, as we get older and we get busy with our day-to-day lives, it becomes far too easy to lose sight of the things we are grateful for.

 This morning, I want to ask you something. What are you grateful for? I mean, really grateful for. Maybe you’ve started a new job, perhaps you’re finally getting to have that cup of coffee you’ve wanted all morning, or maybe just maybe you learned of some good news today. No matter what your situation may be, I hope you can have a posture of gratitude today and every day.

 James 1:17 says, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change."

 In the previous verse, James urges us to not be deceived. Emotions and sinful thinking can trick us into turning away from God. It’s important to cling to the truth, which is that every good thing in our lives is a gift from God. In the midst of our trials, we are tempted to change our opinion of the trustworthiness of our God. We start to make lists of all the things we think we are missing in our lives, of all of the things we have lost. If God were good, wouldn’t we have those things?

 This attitude leads to even more temptation. We begin to look elsewhere for the good things we think we’re missing. We begin to say to ourselves, “If God won’t provide them, I’ll have to go and get them for myself.” We attempt to take control. We struggle to find our own satisfaction.

 James urges us to flip the typical human script. He calls us to make a new list: all the good things we do have. Where did all those good things come from? James is encouraging believers in Christ to tell themselves the truth: God gave you every single good thing in your life. He is the source of all the good you have and all the good you crave. Who God is does not change when our circumstances change. He doesn’t go from being a good God to a bad God when our trials begin. He is still the source of all the good in our lives; He never changes.

 And as He freely gives to us, we can freely give to others because we know that God’s supply for us is flowing. We don’t need to worry because we were never the ones to get it, earn it, deserve it, anyways. It’s all from Him.

So, once again, what are you grateful for today?

by: Cameron Cross, Director of Communications and Connections