This year has been one of the hardest I have had to endure. Because of a cancer diagnosis, I have undergone extensive chemotherapy treatments that have exhausted me physically and emotionally. The other side effects also have been a burden at times. 

For most of us, we can categorize our lives as a series of events ranging from good to bad. When we look back, we can reflect with nostalgia on the good times, but of course, we remember the bad as well. 

But through it all – the pretty and the ugly – there is one thing we can always rely on: God is good all of the time, even when we don’t deserve it. 

It would be easy for me to look back on this year and only see the bad – the pain, lengthy hospital stays, ER visits, all the medical tests and emotional trauma of receiving a stage 4 cancer diagnosis. Yet, through it all, I can see God’s goodness – the successful surgery, the better-than-expected outcomes, the sweet conversations I had with hospital staff or others in the infusion room during chemotherapy, the increased time spent with my family, the encouraging notes and support from friends, and the peace and comfort I feel that comes only from God. 

God’s goodness is a part of his perfect character and demonstrates his grace toward us. It is something we can always rely on that will never fail. 

This week is Thanksgiving – a time to reflect on our blessings and give thanks to God for all he has done for us. What are you thankful for this year? In what ways can you see God’s goodness demonstrated in your life? How can you be an instrument of God’s goodness to others? 

As you spend this week resting in God’s goodness, remember to extend your spirit of thankfulness to the gifts and blessings God gave us, including the arrival and second coming of Jesus. Allow your mindset to continue reflecting on the goodness of Christ as we enter the Advent season next week.

“Praise the Lord! Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!” –Psalm 106:1.3

This devotions is part of a special Faith Focus series focusing on who God is and what he does for his people.