Psalm 145:17-18
(NIV) “The Lord is righteous in all His ways and loving towards all He has made.  The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.”

(The Message) “Everything God does is right—the trademark on all His works is love.  God’s there, listening for all who pray, for all who pray and mean it.”

A couple truths worth knowing here…a few truths which bring encouragement to focus on DAILY!! 

First:  Everything God does IS right.  His love is to be embraced with everything He does.  Doesn’t mean we understand this mind you.  Some things are extremely difficult to understand.  Some things happen to us due to human error and human decision.  But some things are CLEARLY allowed by God.  God promises He will be faithful to complete the work He has started in His people.  In the visually good or bad, God has HIS trademark of love on EVERYTHING!!  

If we say we trust Him, then we MUST believe this.  How?  Well, sometimes I think it is easy.  Sometimes we can just look and say “wow—it looks God, so God must be in it”.  Sometimes it is stressful.  Sometimes, our circumstances cause us to question if God’s hand of love is there.  Why is it we have no problem honoring God’s love in the bright spots, but question it in the rough spots??  OH—because we are human.  Because society tells us that in bad times, God must not be paying attention or caring.

Second:  God is there—LISTENING to those who call on Him in truth.  There comes a point in our maturity of faith, where we take our childlike simple prayers (which He most likely adores from those with a childlike faith), and grow to deeper, more intimate prayers.  Life experience has a tendency to produce more passionate prayers.  We begin to see our need for God to carry us through each moment.  We learn, as Job did, to praise God through the good and the bad.  We learn to be REAL before God.  He knows our heart and mind anyway.  Maybe this is why He told us to love Him with “all your heart, soul, mind, and strength”.  The moment He has every element of you is the moment your prayers truly call to the heart of God. 

Now, I am not saying He does not hear you otherwise.  I am not saying you have to pray in a deep level of maturity.  What I am saying is God listen’s to all who pray in TRUTH.  With the truth of who they are.  Are you not perfect?  Welcome to the club.  Is your desire to be more like the Lord, or is your desire to look good in your religion?  God KNOWS my imperfections.  I can try to excuse them to anyone and everyone.  But GOD ALONE knows my true heart and motives.  I may live like Paul sometimes (doing what I don’t want to do, and not doing what I know I need to do), yet God knows my heart.  He knows when I truly seek Him in prayer.  

As you go through this week, continue to trust in God.  Pray to Him from the “real-ness” of who you are.  Know He listens.  Know He cares. 

In the rough patch, look for God’s hand.  Look for His touch.  It may not be real easy to see.  May feel like looking for a needle in a haystack.  But look.  You say you trust Him, then trust He is there.  Trust He will work ANYTHING out for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.  Looking for His touch in the rough will help you keep focused on the Lord.

In the good patch, look for God’s hand.  It is not by mere luck or chance good things happen.  It is not simply because you are just so good and talented.  God gave the abilities.  God gave the opportunity.  We must look for God in these too, so as not to become proud of OUR own strength, but excited God gave us the moment.  Look for how HE is there.

Be encouraged.  Be of good faith.  Be—with HIM!