Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness. Psalm 65:11
Can you remember the resolutions that you made at the start of this year? If you are like the rest of us, they are just a foggy memory, if that. And it’s for certain that you didn’t keep those resolutions. But think about it for a moment, how much different would life be if you had kept those resolutions? Would you have lost weight, or have a better relationship with your spouse, or be earning more money, or have a greater knowledge of the book of Hebrews? Hard to say, isn’t it? Because every one of us has failed to live up to what we set out for ourselves. How much more have we failed to live up to what our Lord would have desired for us this year? But if we look at our text, we must admit that our God has met all of our expectations of Him, and far more.
Psalm 100:5 tells us that the Lord is good, His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endureth to all generations. As we look back over the year, we must confess that God has crowned this year with His goodness. In material things, God’s goodness has abounded toward us this year, feeding, clothing, sheltering us, preserving us from perils known and unknown. In spiritual things, God’s goodness has abounded toward us this year, feeding our souls with His Word, blessing us with the fellowship of His people, filling us with the hope of His soon return. When we needed comfort, our God drew alongside in tender compassion. When we needed supply, God guaranteed our daily bread and more from His vast resources. When we needed encouragement, God lifted our spirits in renewal. Wherever we look, as we review the past year, God has crowned it with His goodness.
This is my final message of this year. And it is written in deepest thanksgiving for all that God has enabled me to pass on to you from Himself. Because it is from His hand that I have drawn my messages. Like you, I may feel disappointment in myself as the year’s accounts are closed. But I feel nothing but gratitude for the measure in which the Lord has crowned 2025 with His goodness. – Jim MacIntosh