Always Only Good

One of my favorite songs contains the following powerful lyrics: 

Looking back, I can see Your fingerprints upon my life, always seeking my best. There were times when Your way would make no sense, but as You said, You have never left.

These words resonate deeply with me because they reflect my own personal testimony. Looking back over my life, I can clearly see how faithfully the Lord has led and guided me. In the moment, many circumstances make absolutely no sense, but hindsight allows us to reflect more fully on what was truly best.

The chorus of the song continues:

You are always good; You are only good. You are always good to me. Though my eyes can’t see, help my heart believe You are always only good.

Faith that Declares God’s Goodness

This song became even more meaningful to me when I learned the story behind it. The composer of the melody was a young man who struggled with severe mental illness after taking medication. After fifteen years of battling schizophrenia, he took his own life on Mother’s Day. Following his death, his family wrote the above words to accompany the tune.

What could inspire a grieving family to boldly declare that God is always good? How could they rejoice that their greatest heartache was used to impact thousands of lives? This kind of faith recognizes that even when we cannot see the bigger picture, we can have complete confidence in the goodness and character of God.

In Galatians 1, Paul gives a brief account of his personal testimony. He shares how the Lord revealed Himself to him so that he might preach to the Gentiles. Once again, we see the extreme goodness of God stepping into a life and radically changing it for the better.

Paul goes on to famously say in Romans 8:28, "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."

Trusting God’s Goodness in our Own Stories

I believe songs and stories like these move us so deeply because they invite us to reflect on our own most difficult circumstances and still declare that God is always only good. Never once have we been forsaken, and never once has He failed us.

I remember one summer when this truth was especially real to me. After teaching at my dream job for two years, my administrator informed me that they would be cutting back the newest teachers for the following school year. I spent the entire summer struggling to understand the timing of it all. It felt awkward when conversations turned to my job, and I had to explain that I was currently searching for a teaching position.

Thankfully, just a couple of weeks before the school year began, I was hired for a perfect teaching role. I loved that job, and so much of what I learned there has since become a stepping stone for different areas of ministry.

While losing a job was not life-altering, it was painful. In the moment, it made no sense, but looking back, I can say with certainty that God was always only good.

As we enter a new year in 2026, some of us may feel a sense of trepidation about what lies ahead. The struggles of 2025 might leave us bracing ourselves for what is to come. Allow me to simply remind you that we serve a God who is always working behind the scenes to bring about what is best.

So often, the good He is accomplishing may not even be for us. Perhaps God is using your season of suffering, waiting, or struggle to work in the lives of those around you. 

But no matter the outcome, we can always trust the Author. His character never changes. He is always only good.