Chased
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.
~Psalm 23:6
In Hebrew, the phrase "shall follow me" means to pursue, run after, or chase.
Surely goodness and mercy shall CHASE after me all the days of my life.
Awhile back, I was having one of those days. My eyes were fixed on the heavy things in my life at that moment....a grandson struggling with autism, a world in turmoil, and questions, so many questions and concerns about the direction of my life and business. My heart was heavy with all of it. As I drove down the freeway, my mind effortlessly wandered to all the dark places of hopelessness it could find. My soul felt weighty and burdened by the cares of this world that were just too heavy for this traveler to carry alone.
As I rolled down the freeway, the song Goodness of God came on the radio. I began to tune my mind out of the dark and dreary space it had so easily wandered into and I began to listen to the words of the song..... really listen and let the words wash over me.
All my life You have been faithful. All my days You been so, so good.....You have led me through the fire
And in darkest night You are close like no other...
As my mind meditated on the words and the darkness lifted from my soul, a car to my left sped by me. It quickly reached the car up ahead of it and then sat right on it's bumper in hot pursuit. Next came these words in the song, Your goodness is running after, it's running after me!
What a sight to see this car chasing after the other one while hearing.....Your goodness is running after, it's running after me.
I kind of gasped at the sight, concerned for the driver in front of the hot car on it's bumper, as well as stunned at how God just displayed the words of the song playing on the radio right in front of me. This sight of the two cars bumper to bumper cemented in my mind how God chases us down with His goodness and mercy. Oh, how my heart lifted right up!
The chase continued as the words of the song poured out. Tears swelled up in my eyes as I imagined the Goodness of God chasing me throughout my life and never letting me go. The ups, downs, the twists and the turns, He has always been right here. Even when I was oblivious or just too busy to notice, His goodness was running after me. Never overtaking me or running me over, but always right there pursuing me.
Do you understand the crazy love of God and His goodness and mercy that chase you down in hot pursuit? Even when you wander, reject Him, or get lost in sin, He pursues you with an everlasting love and He never stops.
The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ~Lamentations 3:22-23
Pray with me....
Heavenly Father, Thank You or Your goodness and mercy that chase after us. Thank You for never letting us go, or leaving us on our own. Forgive us, cleanse us and heal us. We live in an upside down world that feels like it is about to spin off it's axis. Things continue to heat up all over the world. Yet, here we are, living in the time that You have appointed for us. Give us courage and strength to press on. Fill our hearts with hope, the hope of Your Kingdom coming! Draw us closer to You, take us deeper into Your Word, and fill us fresh with Your Holy Spirit. Use us for Your glory. Thy will be done. In Jesus Name
