These 23 verses point you to the goodness of our God and what it means for our lives. 1. The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth. 21. Hear me, O Lord, for Your lovingkindness is good; turn to me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies. They often turn to their faith for advice and comfort, for explanation of their feelings, and to seek atonement and a way to deal with their feelings of guilt. 15. McGuire, Meredith B. 2008. Lived Religion: Faith and Practice in Everyday Life. A civil profession of faith ought to tolerate all and only those religions that tolerate others, he suggested, at least insofar as the respective religious groups do not uphold beliefs that run contrary to citizens’ duties. Nearly all major religions claim at least some degree of exclusivity, even those religions that say that all religions are true would have to exclude the exclusivist religions that say they are wrong. Following well-documented trends that trace the decline of Christianity in Western Europe, the share of Europeans who say that God plays an important role in life has declined since 1991. Spain, Italy and Poland had the most dramatic decreases, with declines of 26, 21 and 14 percentage points, respectively.

What compounds the problem are the multitude of voices and Instagram-celebrities that promote their own unique way of following God. Deeds of benevolence may be and are often done by those who are not His; but all who truly belong to Him must live a life which praises Him continually in good works; not, it is hardly needful to say, as a cause–but rather the natural and inevitable result of love for Him, warming the heart within.Scrupulous indeed were the “religious” contemporaries of James; they would not enter where the image of Divus Caesar had its votive flame, while they were ceremonially clean for the keeping of their passover–“they went not into the judgment hall lest they should be defiled” (John 18:28). But He whom there they cruelly sought to slay had told them before, though in vain, “that which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man” (Mark 7:20), and “nothing from without can defile him” (James 1:15). What an eternal caution may be learned here against cold reliance upon ritual! What an instance, ever, under all varieties and forms, to be applied to themselves by the erring; persecuting, and deceitful sons of men! while, on the other hand, from these words of the wise Apostle we may be sure what is truest, nay, the only true service, acceptable and accepted, of the Most High–“To visit the fatherless and the widow,” beholding in them a new image of Christ, the Man of Sorrows, is to show pity verily to Him; and at the last such “pure religion” will receive His own approval.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight. The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag: “I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all,” should be rendered by standing at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart. 7. No one is good but One, that is, God. 8. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. For sinners like you and me who were lost and completely unable to save ourselves from our dead-set rebellion against God, there may not be two more hopeful words that we could utter. 18. The Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.

6. The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works. I agree with Rosemary that it is a good thing for Christians to use sources within tradition to create an ecojustice ethic. Christians have always admitted the reality of spiritual beings, including the demonic. After a near-death experience at the age of 10- he became so weak and ill that men in the refugee camp began digging a shallow grave for him- Kimmie decided to work the rest of his life to ensure that no child would ever have to live with extreme malnutrition, disease or poverty. Men shall speak of the might of Your awesome acts, and I will declare Your greatness. They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness, and shall sing of Your righteousness. 15. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! 23. Oh, how great is Your goodness, which You have laid up for those who fear You, which You have prepared for those who trust in You in the presence of the sons of men!