All Good Gifts
“Every good action and every perfect gift is from God.” James 1:17
To celebrate my birthday last month Bonita and I went to see a local production of Godspell. Godspell is a musical based on the Gospel of Matthew. I have loved this musical since it first came out in the 70s. There is a lot of good music in Godspell but there’s one song in it that I’ve been thinking about quite a bit the past few days. It’s called “All Good Gifts.” Here’s the first verse and chorus:
But it is fed and watered by God’s almighty hand..
He sends us snow in winter, the warmth to swell the grain…
The breezes and the sunshine, and soft refreshing rain…
All good gifts around us
Are sent from Heaven above
Then thank the Lord, thank the Lord for all his love…
The reason I’ve been thinking of this song is that I have been blown away by the awe-inspiring beauty I’ve seen in southern California this week. Rob has shown me some incredible places! We’ve visited the Pacific coast, the San Gabriel Mountains, and the Mojave Desert. It’s all so beautiful! It is also all a wonderful gift bestowed upon us by our heavenly Father.
The appropriate response to a gift received is a word of gratitude. If someone gives us a nice gift we say “thank you.” That being the case, considering the fact that all of Creation is a gift from God, shouldn’t we be saying “thank you” a whole lot more often? “Thank the Lord, thank the Lord, for all His love…”
–Chuck
(The image above was taken earlier this week on the Pacific Coast. The bottom image was taken last night at Kelso Dunes in Mojave National Preserve.)