Every Good Thing

Every good thing and every perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father.
James 1:17

Today I caught every single green light between my home and the train station. I arrived in record time, paid for my great parking spot and calmly climbed (un-rushed) aboard the train I take to work every day. This may not seem like a big deal but to me it was a very good thing. It was a whole string of good things.

As I sat down I thought, "Wow, thanks, God." Suddenly this thought occurred to me that maybe God had nothing to do with these things. That perhaps God wasn't interested in my schedule and that in the grand scheme of things whether or not I am out of breath when I hop on the train is of little consequence. Then in the same moment this verse popped in my head. "Every good thing and every perfect thing".

I believe that God cares about me. I believe that that care is not limited to my spiritual well being. I believe He is after my affections and attentions. I believe that it is a good thing to catch all the green lights. I decided to go with my original thought and thank Him.

What would happen if I decided to thank Him for "every good thing"? If I think about all the good things that are in my life and that happen to me - little or large - and if I acknowledge that every one of them is from Father, then I have much to be thankful for every day.

But what if I am wrong? What if God didn't save me a great parking spot? What if the sale on milk had nothing to do with Him? What if everyday stuff like this doesn't qualify as a "good thing"? Then I will have given God more credit then He is due. (Is that even possible?) And if so, well, I am sure that there are many things He does do - to me and for me - that are good that I do not thank Him for.

In the very least, attempting to thank Him for every good thing would, by default, cause me to "acknowledge Him in all my ways" and THAT is a very good thing.