As human beings, we have the tendency to despise the goodness of God, and it is not necessary that we are cajoled we are again and again in order for us to thank Him and appreciate Him. The reason that we despise His goodness is mainly because we do not know that God is good. People do not want to take responsibility for the things that happen in their lives, and so they explain it off. Many times, people would not go as far as to say that God did evil to them, but they would say that God approved it, but I tell you something, there is no difference between what God approves and what God does.
You must begin to understand God as God who will neither approve nor give any kind of evil towards His people. God is intrinsically good. In the Bible there are different words translated as the will of God. But there are two major categories of the will of God. For example, it can be a will that cannot be changed. It is the will of God that Jesus Christ is coming again, and that cannot be changed. It is the will of God that when we die, we go to heaven. If any believer dies for any reason, he will go to heaven.
Therefore, it is left for you and me to choose to agree with the will of God so that the will of God will be done in our lives. If anyone is sick, it is the will of God for that person to be healed. But then, the person must agree with the will of God for him to be healed. During the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ, He went about healing the people, and that is as many people that allowed Him by their faith. The question is, how do we get our will to agree with the will of God in our lives?
Romans 12:1-2, says, I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
It is in your mind that you approve the will of God. The fact is that God wills something for you, but the Bible says that you and I need a mind that is renewed to be able to approve it. It is when you approve it by declaring that this is the will of God for you that you will actually get it. It is the will of God for me to prosper, so I will prosper. It is the will of God for me to possess the gates of my enemies, and I will have to approve of this promise for me to have it.
The word approve there is the key to faith. When you think it in such a way that this is what God says and thinks of you, and you approve it, then the power of God will be released. Once you approve the will of God as it affects your life, the power of God goes into operation on your behalf. That is why we can say that God proposes, but man disposes.
Excerpts from the forthcoming book of Pastor Alex Adegboye, ‘God is Good!’
