Day 35: Goodness

Goodness. When you really think about it, it seems a strange word. Something can be good, but how do we possess a virtue of 'goodness'? What distinguishes goodness? Or is it just a generic term?

To be honest, I'm not too sure either way. We often talk about things being good, or that we feel good. But is good the right word to use. I know I once had a teacher who taught us never to reply 'good' when someone asked us how we were, rather, we were to reply 'fine' or 'well'. The reason this teacher said this was in the understand that good meant without sin. When God created the earth, it was 'good'. It was without sin. But there is another thing that we can attribute to the word 'good'. Namely, that by being classified as 'good', the things of creation were serving God's benevolent purposes. 

If an attribute of the 'new man' is goodness, then we can conclude that by being good, we submit ourselves to God's service, that we free ourselves from the Devil and his power, and allow God to work in us to produce 'good works'. Of ourselves we could never be good. But because of Christ we have been enabled to do good. We are now able to do 'good works' and things that will work for the 'good' of our neighbour. 

Sometimes I think of the lack of goodness in this world. At present we hear of riots from the continuing civil war in Lybia, we hear of famine and drought in east Africa, and even in Australia we can see the lack of good in the greens proposition to do away with the Marriage Act. Goodness is declining. 

I think we have the opportunity in this situation to show good in this goodness world. Just as we are called to be lights in this world, we can be beacons of goodness. Helping our neighbours, giving aid to war stricken countries, providing financial aid to those in need etc. We have been given the spirit and the will to do good. Let us use it. In our own situations, what ever they may be, we can always help. Just keep an eye out, the opportunity will rise. May God work in us that we may be of goodness to our neighbours.