God is Good

A friend on Facebook posted this a few weeks back.  It's something I want to carry with me throughout the New Year.  I hope it encourages you too.

God is good....
It does not mean that things in my life will always be good....but that God is good.
It does not mean that my life will be an easy one....but that God is good.
It does not mean that my prayers will always be answered in the way I would like....but that God is good.
It does not mean that tragedy may not visit me.....but that God is good.
It does not mean that there will be no suffering in this world......but that God is good.
It does not mean that there will not be times when I am so overcome with sadness at memories in my life that I must go outside and find a place to be alone and just cry for an hour....but that God is good.
It does not mean that there will not continue to be many who deny His very existence because of the pain and seeming unfairness of life around them.....but that God is good.
It does not mean that there will not be many questions for which we have no answers.....but that God is good.
In short, the circumstances of life do not always seem to be good, but God Himself is always good.  Thus though there may not always be happiness, there is always hope.  That must be the basis for our faith - not that God gives us a happy life.

from The Secrets of Heathersleigh Hall by Michael Phillips