Refined - Finding Joy in the Midst of the FireSample

The phrase “how great is Your goodness” communicates that the Psalmist understands that God’s goodness is unable to be measured in human terms. If you were to live as long as Methuselah, you would be unable to tap in to all the goodness that God has stored up for your singular life. There is no measuring tape that is able to fit around the goodness of God, and there is no scale that is capable of weighing the immensity of His eternal goodness. There is no mathematical equation that is able to determine the amount of God’s perpetual goodness. When the word “good” or “goodness” is used in the Old Testament Scriptures, it can mean a variety of too-good-to- be-true attributes that are found in the nature of God himself. “Goodness” can be defined as “wisdom,” “kindness,” “wealth,” “beauty,” and “cheerfulness.” “Goodness” is also determined to include “intelligence,” “understanding,” “property,” “divine glory,” and “welfare.” And if that is not enough, “goodness” also means “happiness,” “gladness,” and, quite emphatically, the “best of everything”! All of that and more, according to Psalm 31:19, is stored up, or set aside in a heavenly holding place for you. In the Hebrew, there are two types of holding places that are often referenced in the Bible. One type of holding place is hidden and inaccessible; the other type of holding place is one that is easily accessible. This life-changing verse, which was meant to introduce you to the goodness of God, says that God’s goodness is a holding place that is easily and readily accessible. God’s goodness is not locked away and hidden. God wants you to find His goodness! God’s desire is that you would tap in to His goodness every day of your life! God is generous with His goodness and can’t wait for you to benefit from all that He is and all that He has!