"Goodness And Mercy Are Following"

"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." Psalm 23:6 

I want to look at the portion of the scripture that says, "goodness and mercy shall follow me", and address it. When I think of "following", I think of it in two ways.

 

The first way that goodness and mercy "follow" is in the sense that not only do they "accompany" me but that I also "leave them behind" me everywhere I go. Our reputations "follow" us- people know who we are because of the things we have done. Do you have the reputation of showing goodness and mercy in the situations you face? Are you leaving goodness and mercy behind you like a footprint a person would leave in the sand that testifies that they were there? As Christians goodness and mercy should always be accompanying our lives. We should be good regardless of the situation, and we should do good to all those we come in contact with. We should also show mercy, mercy to all. Mercy should be there when we deal with people who don't deserve mercy. 

 

Then secondly, God gives us a promise that goodness and mercy shall follow us- they will be our "traveling companions", ever present wherever we go. Goodness and mercy are following us to encourage us in our walk with the Lord. They are "pushing" us from behind to continue to run the race, fight the good fight of faith and keep pressing toward the mark. Their presence is a constant reminder that it was because of God's own goodness and His mercy, not our own and not anything that we did, that we have been forgiven and are now His child. That then gives us the strength to go on. 

 

Goodness and mercy follow us in two ways. One way is for others- to be extended to them as a testimony of Christ in your life. The other way is for you- they are given from God to aid and encourage you in your walk with Him. 

 

Have a great day. Goodness and mercy are following you, and are they following you? 

 

For further reading:

Matthew 5:7

Galatians 6:10; 5:22

Proverbs 11:17

Luke 6:36

Ephesians 5:9