THE GOODNESS OF THE LORD

READINGS: THIRTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Our Responsorial Psalm for this 13th Sunday, Year A, says, “Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord”. What a beautiful acclamation to proclaim, and yet what, what a difficult song to sing when things are not working out as planned and hoped for.

Yes, it is easy to trust God's love and sing to His goodness when things are going very well. I can remember plenty of those times in my life, and I am sure many of us do, as well. But there are those other times when storms hit, and sorrow fills the heart; when days are dark and prayers seemingly go unanswered; when hope seems to fail and we wonder where God is. Faith takes a downward spiral; singing the Lord's goodness forever sounds implausible, and our song is more like “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”

The Psalmist says, “I would have lost heart if I had not believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living” (Psalm 27:13). A friend of mine told me, some time ago, that “The greater our memory of how good and gracious God has been to us in the past, the more likely we are to praise Him during present storms. I remember the story of a thirteen-year-old girl who was invited to a revival by her friends, and the theme of the revival was “Rejoice always in the Lord”. After the revival, she gave a deep thought to what was said, and when she got home, she asked her mother: “Mummy, have you ever rejoiced and praised the goodness of God, even though you were in big-time trouble?” Mum thought for a moment and then said, “Hmmm, yes, I have”. “How possible is that mum? Come on, be honest”, the girl retorted. Her mum replied, “By remembering the many times God has rescued me in the past, the many times He has been good to me, and the many times He has been there for me. Those memories gave me the confidence to believe that God will rescue me again, no matter what.” Then reaching out to the kitchen table, she picked up her bible, and said to her: Here is what the Bible says, “I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your wondrous works and utter the memory of Your great goodness [toward me], and therefore shall sing of Your righteousness” (Psalm 145:5-7). At his juncture, the girl’s dad, who was watching a football game, lowered the TV volume and said, “Helena, some things are true about God regardless of what is going on with our lives. When we are living through hard times, it may be hard for us to understand the ways God expresses his love for us. But God never stops being good. I think that many a time, we doubt His love for us just because we are so focused on our present struggle.”

I was so touched by this story, and remembering what Scripture said, “My kindness is established forever” my thoughts found words in this prayer: “Good and gracious God, sometimes, in the midst of life-storms, You seem so distant, as though you have forgotten me, and I feel like you are looking the other way and not paying attention to what is going on in my life. Please grant me the grace to always trust and to rejoice in your goodness, and to remember how you have been there for me in the past. Let my faith in you be built upon the unshakable foundation that is Jesus Christ, your Son, and help me to always remember how you have been there for me, in thick and thin. I know that it is not by power or might, but by Your Spirit. Amen!