If you have found yourself in the direct path of a searing fire in life, your bravest choice is to recognize who God is and then glorify Him as Lord. If you refuse to recognize the character and goodness of God when the temperature of life is uncomfortably high, you will find yourself in a most perilous spot.
“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” — A.W. Tozer
It is utterly and critically necessary that you know who God is. Man fell when he lost his right concept of God. If you do not embrace a correct definition of who God is, you may fall into depression, bitterness and sin as the trials of life assail you. You may fall into losing hope, direction, and perhaps even losing faith if you don’t know Him in all His fullness and goodness.
“Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools” (Rom. 1:21-22, NLT).
In these verses from the Book of Romans, mankind became confused about what character traits God possessed and who He actually was. Humanity refused to honor God and refused to worship Him. Their worst mistake of all was when mankind began to think that God was someone that He wasn’t.
Although mankind proudly yet falsely believed they were know-it-alls, they became fools when they denied the glory of God and imagined that God was only like them.
“Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done” (Rom. 1:28, NLT).
They ineptly thought that God was no different from birds, cows or reptiles. These men and women exchanged the truth of God for a lie. They did not know the character of God when it mattered the very most. Knowing, declaring and worshipping God while in the furnace of great affliction is what will transform your life into a trophy of pure gold.
“How great is the goodness you have stored up for those who fear you. You lavish it on those who come to you for protection, blessing them before the watching world” (Ps. 31:19, NLT).
This life-changing verse, which was meant to introduce the goodness of God, states that God’s goodness is a holding place that is easily and readily accessible. It also promises that everyone who takes refuge in the Lord will be the blessed recipients of God’s perpetual and enthusiastic goodness. The phrase “on those who come to you for protection” (translated “on those who take refuge in you” in the NIV) means that when you find yourself in the brilliant habit of fleeing to God for protection during the storms of life, you will most certainly receive His goodness.
When you run into God’s shelter, you place yourself in the position of receiving all the good that He has intended for you specifically to receive. If you determine to hide yourself in God while the storms of life are raging, you will discover the goodness of God in that safe place that has been created just for you!
When your world is falling apart, do you run toward God or away from Him? Even faithful believers can be deceived by the lies of the enemy and then make poor choices during difficult days of life. If you run toward food, shopping, spending or worrying when you are walking through a trial, you will find yourself unable to tap into the lavish goodness of God.
However, if, when you find yourself between that infamous rock and a hard place, you run toward God with all your might, then His goodness will chase you down! Begin to worship Him despite the extreme heat of the fire, and this hot place may become your finest hour.
God’s deep desire is that His beloved children would tap into His goodness every day of their lives! He is generous with His goodness, and He can’t wait for you to benefit from all that He is and all that He has.
Carol McLeod is a bestselling author and popular speaker at women’s conferences and retreats, where she teaches the Word of God with great joy and enthusiasm. Carol encourages and empowers women with passionate and practical biblical messages mixed with her own special brand of hope and humor.
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