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proving the goodness of God




I have shared the song The Shadow Proves the Sunshine by Switchfoot with you before, but in today’s post I’d like to draw your attention to a specific fact.  What sticks out to me ought to give us a lot to think about and even more to praise God for.  Here is part of the song:

Oh Lord, why did you forsake me?
Oh Lord, don't be far away away
Storm clouds gathering beside me
Please Lord, don't look the other way

Crooked souls trying to stay up straight
Dry eyes in the pouring rain
The shadow proves the sunshine
The shadow proves the sunshine

The last week I have heard this song a couple times, and God has used these words to encourage me to keep on and not to stop.  It brought light and strength into my thinking and even into my acting.  Julie and I were driving this past weekend when the song came on again, and she said she had not heard it.  The next few minutes of our conversation reaffirmed what God was already saying.

Have you gone through struggles?  Of coarse you and I both have.  Have you been through pain, storms and what seemed like danger?  We have, and we have grown through those times.

Without the struggles and the defeats, we would not be able to celebrate the victories.  Without the sickness and the pain, we would not be able to enjoy health and feeling good.  Without the storms and the difficult situations as well as the valleys we go through, we wouldn’t be able to understand and take in all that the mountain top experiences have for us.  Literally the shadow proves the sunshine.

Daylight savings time has begun.  We aren’t many days away from the beginning of spring where we will see the new flowers and the growth of nature.  We will enjoy the day and the sunshine, but unless we have seen the shadows we would miss the sweetness of the sun and all it brings our way.

What about your life?  What struggles have you been through that have taught you about God’s goodness?  I bet there are several as there have been a lot in my life.  My prayer is that God will prove His goodness to us.  In fact I have been told and learned that the closer we get to God the more struggle we will go through.  With much growth comes much struggle.

John 15:2  NLT
He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more.

Proverbs 10:25  NLT
When the storms of life come, the wicked are whirled away, but the godly have a lasting foundation.

Psalm 18:30  NLT
God’s way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.

Colossians 1:29  NLT
That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me.

May we see the goodness of God as we go through all that life brings our way.  May the storms of life prove that God loves us and that He is for us.  May the shadows prove the sunshine each and every day.

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