Every Good Gift - Memory Monday

I heard about one of the LifeGroup's class yesterday. (That's what we call Sunday School at our church. Long story - but a good reason why we call them LIFE Groups.) Anyway, they are studying Beth Moore's study about the ascension Psalms - I can't think of the name of it - and yesterday they were talking about God's blessings. This particular group couldn't think of too many things other than the usually - family, home, health, food...

But James tells us in his book, James 1:17 that EVERY good gift is from God.

17 Every good thing given and every perfect gift is ³⁴from above, coming down from ³⁵the Father of lights, ³⁶with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.

So the list is endless. If something is good or perfect it is from God: music, food, paintings, grass, trees, roses, air-conditioning and heat, friendship, love, literature...

"Wait a minute" you might say, "What does God have to do with giving me air-conditioning or beautiful art to look at?" The AC man fixes my air when it's out and I've seen a lot of 'art' that I'm sure God had nothing to do with.

OK. I'll give you a little for that, but in reality, if we have something good it is from God. God gives us the knowledge to figure out how AC works. He is the ultimate Creator and great art and music are possible because we are made in His image and He gives us the skill to create. Yes, we have to work at being good friends to have good friends, but in the end it is when we are like Christ that we have deep meaningful friendships.

Is this a stretch? I don't think so. Leave a comment and tell me what you think.

Memorize James 1:17 and spend some time meditating on it and I think you'll see more and more gifts from above.

I suppose this picture probably gives a more literal and perhaps a more accurate idea of the good and perfect gifts from above - grace, forgiveness, the Holy Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control... (you can add to the list) These are the true good and perfect gifts from God. But I still say that other things in our life that are good are from God.