Good is a word often used to mean ‘acceptable’ but perhaps not much more. A good movie, a good story, a good journey. It can be used as an adjective, an adverb or a noun; it is often the first complimentary word which comes to mind, yet somehow, it almost seems to mean barely above average. When we really want to show our appreciation, words like fantastic, awesome, amazing seem more appropriate.
Have you ever found yourself experiencing something which touches you in a way that cannot be expressed in words? Perhaps a piece of music which filters through the cracks of your thoughts; an encounter which raises your spirit; a view that takes your breath away?
Would you describe these as ‘good’?
On a recent holiday by the coast, I stood watching the waves on a vast expanse of beach. They were rolling gently in, following the curve of the bay. Whichever way I looked they came, consistently, relentlessly moving forward, glinting in the sunshine. A thought crossed my mind: ‘this is good’. But I was aware that I did not mean pretty or beautiful, certainly not just above average, but good in a deep sense that meant ‘this is how it should be, how it was designed to be’. Good carried with it a sense of completion. I could simply stand and ‘be’. I could appreciate and partake in what I saw without the need to label, explain, or justify. It was…. well…. profoundly good.
This, we are told in Genesis chapter 1, is what God thought when he created. Again and again we read ‘and God saw that it was good’. Each astounding development, each new phenomenon was good. On one level I have often thought that this is the most incredible understatement of all time, but perhaps there was more to something new appearing that made it good. What God created was as it should be… as it was designed to be, with no need to label, explain or justify.
And once God had completed his creation by creating mankind, we read ‘God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.’ That means that when I was created (knit together in my mother’s womb, Psalm 139) He saw me as very good. Deeply good. No need to add, compare or explain. God sees me, primarily, as good. If I truly believe that, it will affect my self-image, my choices, my relationships and yes, the way that I respond to my mistakes, the times when I stray from the good which I was created.
We are all experts at underestimating ourselves; low self-esteem is prevalent, but this is not how God sees us.
What does it feel like to allow yourself to hear the words ‘you were created deeply and profoundly good’?