God’s Goodness

 September 13, 2021

My daughter commented on yesterday’s musings, saying, “I love hearing these stories, Dad. These are things I never knew.” So I thought, “Why not another obscure story from the life and adventures of Jim Bailey?”

The Bible covers about 3,000 years of human history, so although we read many stories of divine intervention, when we take into account the years between the various events recorded, miraculous acts of God aren’t as common as we sometimes suppose, and even these are often clustered together in the lives of a very few individuals. Angelic visitation was common enough to be believable, but rare enough to be exceptional. For example, we read of the Angel of the LORD stopping Abraham from sacrificing Isaac, of God speaking to Moses from a burning bush, and parting the Red Sea. An angel visited Joshua and Gideon, appeared to Daniel, and escorted Peter out of prison.  

I was about seven years old that summer when the family vacationed at Silver Lake, Canada, camping with some friends of my father and mother. Our tents were set up near a small, relatively shallow bay that opened up to the larger lake beyond. On this particular day, the adults were swimming about fifty yards out in the bay near where it met the rest of the lake. I was floating on an air mattress closer to shore, leaning over to watch the fish swimming beneath me. I can still see in my mind’s eye the sticks that lay in profusion on the muddy bottom of the bay. I leaned a bit too far and suddenly fell off the air mattress into the water. I couldn’t touch bottom, couldn’t swim, and was too far from the adults for them to notice. 

Frantically splashing and struggling to keep my head above water wasn’t workin; I was choking as I went under. The next thing I know, I’m on the shore. The adults were still out in the bay, oblivious to the crisis unfolding behind them and out of reach. There was no one else around. A moment before, I was under water, over my head; the next, I was standing on the shore, safe.

I knew nothing of God or angels at that point in my life, so I didn’t know what had happened. At that age, I had no inkling of the call God was to place on my life, but looking back, I can sing with Jonah, 

“The water came over me and choked me; the sea covered me completely...I went down…into the land whose gates lock shut forever. But you, O Lord my God, brought me back from the depths alive.” —Jonah 2:5-6 

I have failed him many times since then, but Christ has always been faithful. Yesterday in worship we sang my testimony of the Goodness of God:

I love You Lord

Oh Your mercy never fails me

All my days

I've been held in Your hands

From the moment that I wake up

Until I lay my head

I will sing of the goodness of God

All my life You have been faithful

All my life You have been so, so good

With every breath that I am able

I will sing of the goodness of God

I love Your voice

You have led me through the fire

In darkest night

You are close like no other

I've known You as a father

I've known You as a friend

I have lived in the goodness of God

—Ed Cash & Jenn Johnson