As I come alongside hurting people who go in and out of dark places, I feel the warm, gentle breeze of the Holy Spirit hovering over the darkness like “In the beginning” (Genesis 1:1). I get the privilege of seeing God shine His light and His love where it’s desperately needed. Then I get to see the Spirit of God awaken people of all ages to a growing awareness of a good and faithful God who works together in and through all things for His good (Romans 8:28).
That doesn’t mean that dealing with grief, losses, injustices, relational battles, or mental illness feels good. We can’t feel anything good when we’re in the midst of pain and suffering. But God has ways of showing up through unlikely circumstances, people, and processes to provide for our needs and to remind us that He’s at work in the midst of our difficulties. Sometimes it feels like we’re an anxious mess or in a dark tunnel and that we’ll never get out. Oftentimes, it’s not until we’ve gone through rivers of difficulty that we can later look back and see how God provided bridges or boats or “lifeguards” who helped us in ways that we couldn’t even see God’s goodness when we felt like we were drowning with questions, fear, sorrow, or despair.
How can anyone call today “Good Friday”? Jesus was despised and rejected. The Son of Man experienced bitterest grief. He was abused in every way that sinful people could dream up to torture Him. He took upon Himself all of our sin, guilt, shame, pain, and burdens, and by His stripes, we are healed (Isaiah 53). Over the years, so many undeserving people, like me, have received forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation because of the good that came from Jesus’ willingness to go through the worst of the worst. Out of God’s love for us, He sent His One and only Son to die a criminal’s death for the good benefit of all who believe and receive Him.
For all of the bad that has happened to us and for all of the bad that we’ve said and done to those around us, Jesus comes to us with open arms to embrace us and say, “You’re mine!” “I love you.” “I forgive you.” Jesus purged us of our bad and replaced it with His good. He’s even working now in the midst of the chaos of our world and the pain in our lives to do a fresh and new good work in and through us. Not when we feel better or get better. He’s working above us and in us and through us now to bring about something good that maybe we can’t even see yet.
Just as Jesus learned obedience through that which He suffered, we can become more like Christ through the transformation that He orchestrates through the battles that we’ve endured and survived. We may not be able to feel good or see good right now if we’re full of sorrow, confusion, or pain. When our minds, emotions, bodies, or relationships stop working, we pray and ask God to make them work again. Although we may not feel God’s presence, the Holy Spirit comes to us with His faithful, loving presence to cheer us up, to embrace us, to comfort us, to empower us, and to guide us onward.
I pray that you will open your eyes and ears and heart to the gift of God’s Spirit. Jesus told His disciples that they’ll be better off when He goes to be with the Father. Why? Because He promised to send the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, to make His home in the hearts of those who love and obey Him (John 14:23). That’s why today and every day is good. This is the day that the Lord has made; we can rejoice and be glad (Psalm 118:24). For we know that God’s Spirit is alive and working through everything and behind the scenes to do and complete the good work that He planned in advance for us to do (Philippians 1:6).
If you go looking for God and looking for the good in people today, you’re going to find what you’re looking for. When you see God and see the good in others, use your words to thank God and to affirm people. God loves to hear the praises of His people, and people all around us need to be built up and encouraged. When you make it a lifestyle of seeing and saying the good, you’ll become known for being an encourager, and more people will want to listen to you. Spread some good today like crunchy peanut butter, and make your world taste better.