The Good
Galatians 6:9 So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.
God is a God who rewards the good in us. It’s a really simple fact. Like any good father, He wants to see His children live a good life. I know that’s what I want for my children. Yes, I want to see them succeed in their chosen profession. But more than that, I want them to be good people.
People with good morals – honest, decent, hardworking, loving, caring for others. And, like any father, when they were growing up, I tried to teach them those things.
It didn’t always go that well. Kids being kids, they didn’t always get things right – and as you well know, as teenagers they often pushed the boundaries, as teenagers do. And, as an imperfect father, I didn’t always get things right either, just quietly.
But what was in my heart for them, was to bring them up to be good people. And the best way as a parent to do that was to reward the good in them. To teach them that good behaviour, unselfish behaviour, honest and decent behaviour, has its rewards.
I think that approach is pretty much common to all fathers even if, as I said, we don’t always get it right.
And in fact, that’s exactly the approach God takes with us:
So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9)
So, what God’s saying to us there is that, yes, sometimes the going does get tough. But hang in there, keep on doing good, because one day, at harvest time, you’re going to reap the reward that He has ready and waiting for you. God blesses and rewards the good in us. That’s why Jesus said:
Whoever serves me, the Father will honour.(John 12:26)
In a world in which people, more and more, are preferring “fifty shades of grey” to simple black and white, you know, I think that’s not such a bad model. It’s so easy to take the good in people for granted. When all along the good in other people is really a blessing from God that could and should be rewarded in a way that encourages more good in this world.
Just think, for a moment, how powerful an agent of change the rewarding of good could be in your life – through your life. Think of the missional impact that the rewarding of good could have, through you, as you implement God’s approach, God’s model of reward.
And the rewards don’t have to be all that big. A simple “thank you, I so appreciate what you did” will often suffice. So – who in your life is doing good? Who could you reward today, to encourage them to do more good?
Because that’s the model that God has ordained.
That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.
Blessed by this devotion?
Share it with a friend!
Respond